Quest For Ultimate Manhood - by Justin Bowman

For those of you reading this who are friends with me on Facebook, you may have read my status updates over the years about my ‘Quest For Ultimate Manhood’ that I post from time to time.  Basically, being the handyman/jack-of-all-trades/guy-who-can-fix-anything person that I am not, whenever I do something I categorize as “manly,” I check it off of this imaginary list I’ve created.  Some of those items over the years have included: installing a new garbage disposal; replacing a thermostat; replacing a furnace blower motor; installing a new washer & dryer; or my newest “manly” accomplishment of installing shelves in an old closet. The list also includes a few fun things like: finishing a 50-mile ultra-marathon: recording a song and making a music video; coaching my sons’ basketball teams, and so on.  For those of you who may not know me personally, this list actually exists because I am a person who is super comfortable making fun of myself.  I fully understand I am a clumsy, goofy, uncoordinated man who is wrong most of the time, and falls short of something on a regular basis.  I have learned there are specific times when life is to be handled with the utmost level of importance, but generally speaking I tend to not put too much stock in taking myself seriously, and I think that has benefited me well so far.  I am a 34 year old college educated married father of three children, and when my car has an unexpected issue, the first person I call is still my dad. 

Updating this list has been something I get excited about whenever I realize I get to add a new item to it.  However, it has caused me to rethink what this whole notion of ‘Ultimate Manhood’ truly is.  Don’t get me wrong, I started this list out of the pure entertainment of letting people know all the things I’m not skilled at, not that I think any of them actually make someone a true man.  That being said, I’ve pondered whether it’s being able to fix anything with just a few tools, understanding the madness under the hood of a car, being a high ranking executive within a successful company, being awesome at every major sport…or if it’s got anything to do with any of those at all. 

Of the experienced men God has placed in my path of life, when I think about where they fall on the scale of manliness, it has nothing to do with these measures.  There have been many men in my life who have helped me grow and mature over the years.  When thinking about my lasting memories of them, whether it be my dad, grandpa, youth leader in high school, teachers and coaches I really respected, etc., I have tons of memories of fun times spent together.  What I circle back to though, is how they made me feel as a person.  Those who had lasting impacts on me always left me with a feeling of being welcomed, respected, valued, and loved.  Not because of any knowledge or skills they had, but because of the way they treated me.  The men who had the biggest impact on my life had one thing in common that stands out, a strong foundation of faith in God.  I didn’t realize it then, but now that I’m older I can certainly connect the dots.  So I find myself asking, what is it that made these people such great men?  I think it falls back on one idea…they served the Lord.  Whether they acknowledged it or not, they were carrying out God’s will for their lives in areas such as how they treated people, what they let their lives be centered around, and how much time they spent with their families.  I find it hard to accept that a man can be measured by just one thing, but I believe if it came down to one simple measure, it would be serving the Lord.

Joshua 24:15 is displayed under a family portrait in my home.  “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”  In this passage Joshua is making the claim that he and his family will serve the Lord, as opposed to man-made idols that their forefathers served, as the Lord had proven his trustworthiness.  I had not thought about the magnitude of this verse hanging in my home until I was discussing this post with my wife last week.  I believe as men, we have the awesome opportunity to lead our households spiritually, and this task should not be taken lightly.  Choosing to put our pride aside, to be humble enough to know that our personal limitations can only hold us back from our true potential, and that we need the help of a Risen Savior to lead and guide us is a true test of toughness in my book. 

Achieving ultimate manhood may border on impossible, but I feel without surrendering our lives to the will of God, we will never even give ourselves the chance to begin the quest that lies ahead.