After thinking about yesterday’s conversations at Fuel, I suspect Jesus loves Billy Joel. OK, not that He’s going to concerts and tracking with his life style, but sort like in the same way I read on a T-shirt that said, “Jesus loves Porn Stars.” Its an awkward statement when you hear it, but its true.

The point is, Billy Joel wrote these lyrics “I’d rather laugh with the sinners than cry with saints; sinners are much more fun…” And on many levels, I believe this thought resonated with Jesus and still does today.

I think if we were honest most people we consider to be “religious” are not really the people we often consider to be the most fun. I think Jesus knew that; and that’s part of the reason why he hung out with tax collectors, prostitutes, and Samaritans. And the funny thing is, THEY were drawn to Him. There was this mutual attraction. What was it about Jesus that caused people who did very little to think about God, or righteousness, or being good to be interested in Him?

Maybe perhaps God is not as interested in our behavior as we may have been led to believe? Maybe its something more?

Maybe they sensed something in Jesus that most people don’t sense from the church, or people claiming to be Christian?

Maybe it was a sense of acceptance, and an unconditional love—like one would receive from a Father…?

Whatever it was and is, it had to be relevant. Like we discussed, Jesus wasn’t out there running a break-dance ministry or instructing people with a list of do’s and dont’s. Maybe He was just a little more understanding and compassionate. Maybe He listened more than He preached. Maybe He seemed more forgiving than condemning?

Whatever it is, something about Jesus is different than what most of us have been told to believe.

Is it possible that the real message of Jesus is relevant to your life? And are you open to that possibility?

And if you follow Jesus, do you attract the people who don’t follow Jesus? And what might you be able to do in order to be “more like Jesus” and change that?

Maybe Virginia SHOULD wait, and Christians could be much more fun, and Billy Joel hasn’t heard the real story either…

We’ll continue this conversation next Wednesday, and look into what God is really concerned about…because its not what you have been told. It’s a lot more…

Invest and invite,

Pat

Pat Mancuso
patmancuso@mac.com (703) 401-8302
FUEL
See our Blog at: https://menoffuel.com/blog
Join us at: https://www.facebook.com/MenOfFuel

“It’s what you need to keep you going…”

Our mission is to create a comfortable, relevant and honest environment where men can explore and discuss aspects of life, purpose and faith.

We accomplish our mission by reviewing pertinent issues in men’s lives, examining them through relevant biblical principles, followed by a time of discussion with other men.

Wednesday mornings, September through May…and beyond
6:30 AM to 7:30 AM @ Hidden Creek Country Club, Reston, VA.

http://www.hiddencreekcc.com

Gents,

I wanted to recap our time on Wednesday morning, tie it to the new series we are launching next week called “The Greatest Story Ever misTold” and encourage you to invite someone to join us.

To build up to our series, we looked at the story in the bible of the demon possessed man, named Legion:

Mark 5:3 And no one was able to bind him anymore, even with a chain; 4 because he had often been bound with shackles and chains, and the chains had been torn apart by him and the shackles broken in pieces, and no one was strong enough to subdue him. 5 Constantly, night and day, he was screaming among the tombs and in the mountains, and gashing himself with stones. Basically, he was complete whack-job that scared everyone in the town, until of course, he met Jesus.

But within moments of meeting him, Jesus drove out the demons from this man, into a herd of wild pigs, whom then ran into the sea and drowned. Jesus set this man free. This man who desperately tried to control the evil spirits within, whom people tried to shackle and restrain to no avail was simply “set free.” Just because he asked Jesus…

I don’t know where you are or who you were… but I can tell you that I had a Legion of demons within me before I met Jesus too. But unfortunately, even though He set me free; I didn’t live free.

Because nobody told me the real story. Yes, my salvation was secure. But I exchanged one set of shackles for another.

So rather than living in freedom, I went on a quest of self-discipline, and developed a rather strong case of “spiritual B.O.” To my family and close friends, I became that “creepy born again” that believed that the only pathway to God was found through His Word, and my sanctity was going to be measured by my knowledge of Him. And it became all about how I could show God how worthy I was…because I could recite scripture. Because I could name all 66 books of the Bible. Because I stopped partying like John Belushi. Because I began to surround myself with Christian men, and led Bible studies, and was the King of Volunteers at my church. Because I was Captain Christian. And I just wore myself out, and anyone who came into contact with me.

And just like Legion, I began to scare the people around me, just in a different way. I had contracted a different type of Legionnaires’ disease. While I wasn’t running around naked…I was unfortunately equally as offensive.

And isn’t it the truth, that most people we know that don’t want to go to church or look to God, typically can point to a friend or relative that is a judgmental, self-righteous jerk that claims to be a Christian? Yuck.

In Paul’s letter to the Colossians, he wrote:

20 If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as, 21 “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!” 22 (which all refer to things destined to perish with use)—in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men? 23 These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value…”

No Value. That means the things that most men struggle with–(insert your vice here) and beat themselves up over for not controlling —is really of no value. Because its not about what we DO, its about what HE has done for us. Its about Him. Its about His glory, not about proving ours.

Paul also wrote, in 1 Cor 6:12 ”All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.”

Guys, this means once we are in Christ, we have freedom to do anything. That does not mean our poor choices don’t have consequences, it just means our FOCUS should not be on our sins, because God has something BETTER for us, and He does not want us wrapped around the axel beating ourselves up over the stupid things we do.

We’re forgiven. Free. That’s the good news. Crack open a beer, light up a stogie. Just don’t become consumed by it, either way—by doing TOO much of it or focusing on how you are NOT doing any of it anymore at all.

That’s a pretty cool thing, right? You mean, its not about quitting drinking or stopping late night visits to the strip club? Or using bad words? Or not doing this or giving up that? No. It’s much, much more. And you need to bring some friends out an found out why…

Because that’s what we are going to address in the next 7 weeks at Fuel. And we need you to invite your friends to find out the real story. Christianity is not about a religion or a theology or a doctrine. It’s not a set of rules that only the most sanctified people can live up to. Its about the person of Christ, the redeemer of this world, who came to give us life and pay the penalty of death on behalf of all those who believe in Him.

Its as simple as that; and yet so much more.

And that’s where I am going to leave it up to you. Because all of us know someone who can use some hope, faith, and direction. But the church is the last place they want to go, because some don’t believe they are good enough to go. More than that, most are sickened by the hypocrisy of the Christians they see played out in their neighborhoods, or on the front page of the news, or at their family reunions.

We Christians do more to drive people away from Jesus than we do to pull people towards Him. And that’s because we are not good story tellers. We’ve been mis-telling the Greatest Story Ever Told, ever since Jesus walked to Emmaus.

But FUEL is going to change all that. But we can’t do it without you getting your friends out to join us next week.

So do it. Invest and Invite.

See you next week,

pat

This week kicked off the series Family Guy and for those of you who could not make it, I wanted to recap for you what we discussed.

Families are just like organizations; and all organizations have problems with unity, retention, motivation, and success.  So the Gallop Organization commissioned a study of 10 Million people to develop the characteristics of a successful organization and after years of research they boiled it down to the top 12.

The following 12 characteristics are the core principals of the most successful businesses on earth; and its these same principals that will help us engage with our families, the team that we live with every day.

12 Keys of Engaged Team Members
1.    I know what is expected of me on the team.
2.    I have everything I need to do my job right.
3.    I have the opportunity on the team to do what I do best, every day.
4.    In the past seven days, I have received recognition or praise for doing my job right.
5.    My coach or someone in team leadership seems to care about me as a person.
6.    There is someone on the team who encourages my development.
7.    On the team, my opinions seem to count.
8.    The mission/purpose of my team makes me feel my part is important.
9.    My team mates are committed to doing things well (the right things).
10. I have a best friend on the team.
11. In the past six months, one of my coaches has talked to me about my progress.
12. This past year, I have had opportunities to learn and grow.
© The Gallop Organization

These 12 key characteristics do not come about without an agreement on basic values.  It’s here that we develop the template of our family dynamics, by having basic values by which we live by.  And this is where God has already laid the foundation.

The Job of a Committed Husband and Father
Deuteronomy 6:
3 Hear, O Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the LORD, the God of your fathers, promised you. 4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.5Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

The bible gives us instruction on life, and encourages us with 6 basic values that build our character, and gives us insight into the character of God; of whom we were created by in his very likeness.

These 6 Foundational Values are Courage, Integrity, Respect, Responsibility, Empathy, Self-less
C-I-R-R-E-S

Courage   Joshua1:9
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Integrity    James 5:12
“But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath ; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment. “
Respect   Philippians2:3-4
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
Responsibility    Galatians6:3-5
“ For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he
deceives himself.    But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another.    For each one will bear his own load. “
Empathy    Ephesians4:32
“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.“
Self-less   Philippians 2:3-4
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

The task at hand is to know understand how that value plays out in our homes.

What does a value look like in action?

Take a few hours this week with your wife and review the 6 basic values and put together a list of up to 5 characteristics that explain the value in the following 4 circumstances.

1. When the family      is together as a unit; Responsibility looks like…(knowing       your role, pulling your weight, etc)
2. When individual      members of the family interact with each other; Empathy looks      like…(Being supportive, etc..)
3. When the family      interacts with others, Self-less-ness looks like…(Serving others      at the table first, etc…)
4. When no one is      looking; Integrity looks like…(Doing the right things always…)

Do you get the picture?  Putting values in to actions makes our children and ourselves see what that would do to transform the way the family functions.  Its more than just words; its actual action.  And actions bring results, words on a wall do not.

I encourage you, take that action this week, and join us next as we continue this informative and enlightening series!

See you next week.  Please forward this to the person you invited and ask them to join our email list below.

Invest, and Invite.

Pat

Men of Fuel,

Starting this week, Executive Coach and entrepreneur Walt Tomme will lead a 6 week summer series, entitled, “Family Guy” and will teach the strategic steps we can implement to better lead, engage, and relate with the most precious gifts that God has given us: our wives, children, and our families.

Leading a family starts with a solid foundation: one that has established clear values, and is mission focused.

Come join us a Walt leads us in a proactive and dynamic discussion that will challenge us to put fundamental principles of leadership at work in our homes.

This summer, all of us have a unique opportunity to put our families in the position to make a difference in a world that is filled with people desperately seeking for answers to the issues we face in life.

Invite a friend, come pick up a workbook, and challenge yourself to take the 6 week course to changing your family and reshaping and reframing the dynamics in your home.

We will meet at Hidden Creek Country club and start sharply at 7AM…yes my friends, we are starting a half-hour LATER all summer…if not longer!!!

Same Fuel place, New Fuel Time. Same great coffee, and same life changing conversations.  Hope you can join us.

See you Wednesday morning starting 7AM sharp!  Doors open earlier so come by before and grab some coffee if you desire…

Invest an Invite,

Pat

Men of Fuel,

This week marks the celebratory end of our second year at Hidden Creek Country Club. In keeping with tradition we will host our annual end of the year breakfast bonanza but this year will invoke an extended version of this feast.

We bring to you the Big Bacon Breakfast Buffet Bonanza, or for short B5.

This is not your former breakfast burrito bonanza, this is better.

Please come and hear your fellow Fuelers share what impact this year’s discussions have made on their lives and the lives of those around them.

Come listen, and learn.  Come share so others can hear how God has worked in your life–to give others hope that God can do the same in theirs.

As David invited the lame Meshibosheth to dine with the King, so we invite you to come join us and eat breakfast with God’s own royal family. But this time, you’re only lame if you don’t show up.

We’ll have a big buffet with bacon, eggs, hash browns, bagels and bacon.

We will also discuss our summer plans…

Invest and invite,

Pat