Mettle Monday: A 1T Man

We always here about the Proverbs 31 Woman. There are ministeries by that name and often that is the goal of each wife and the desire for each mother in the upbringing of her daughter. But what about our boys? What do we as mothers use as a guide for what we should instill in our boys?!?!

Yesterday, Pastor Preston taught on the qualifications of a deacon as Providence Baptist Church will be accepting nominations for deacons next Sunday. I am a note taker in church and as as I was writing down the characteristics of a deacon, it hit me!!!! This is it, this is what I should be striving to instill in my boys!!! Before I go on I want to list, from 1 Timothy 3:8-13:

• temperate: *moderate or self-restrained; not extreme in opinion, statement,* mild in quality or character; exhibiting temperance
• self-controlled: *control or restraint of oneself or one's actions, feelings, etc.
• respectable: *worthy of respect or esteem; estimable; worthy
• hospitable:*receiving or treating guests or strangers warmly and generously, * characterized by or betokening warmth and generosity toward guests or strangers
• able to teach: *to impart knowledge or skill; give instruction
• not given to drunkenness:* not frequently or habitually drunk
• not violent but gentle
• not quarrelsome: *not argumentative; contentious
• not a lover of money
• manage own family 

As I, once again reflect over these traits (*a distinguishing characteristic or quality) I immediately think how different our culture would be if we, as mothers, ensured that our boys were raised to know these like the back of their hand. I think teenage pregnacy would be out the window, I think gangs would not be ramped, I think bullying would not be front page news and there would be more families intact. Because I am not a man or a father, I can not speak for what they should or should not do. I do know that what my husband teaches our boys and how he teaches them is different than how I, as a mother, teach them. I see that a boy needs both a mother and a father to help them be well rounded and prepared for the world AND I also see, however for the first 5 to 8 years of a boys life, a mother has the GREATEST impact on her boys. This doesn't mean that we can not instill these traits in our girls but there has to be a reason that the specific traits were written down as qualifications for a deacon and a deacon is a male, at least in a Southern Baptist church. I know that not every male will become a deacon but why don't we prepare our boys to be ready to step up into that leadership position should God call them to serve the church in that way?!?! Just think how much better shape our country and families would be in if we spent as much time and money on raising them up to be spiritual leaders as we do in advancing them in sports, computer technology and education. 

I know there are several items on this list that I can address immediately with my boys, how about you? What do you use to help guide you in raising and preparing your boys to be leaders of their family, communities, churches and maybe even our country?