We are not perfect, but our hearts are good. And yet, for many men, something remains difficult to name.
We strive to do the right thing – learning to function, provide, and endure. Still, we sense we have not been taught how to live fully alive as men. And without a proper orientation for our strength, it becomes wasted, misdirected, or perhaps quietly destructive.
There’s a place to pursue deep healing and freedom from the needless suffering often experienced in our life in this world. But this is not the same as allowing our very selves to be formed into the men God can entrust with more of his kingdom. We need to understand our story, while also becoming the man who can bear his strength and offer it well.
Formation requires intentionality. It requires submitting to necessary suffering. It requires a crucible.
A crucible is a container that allows transformation to take place through heat and pressure – where raw material is clarified, refined, and strengthened. For men, this work rarely happens alone. As iron sharpens iron, formation most often occurs in the presence of other men. A small cohort of like-hearted men creates the conditions where our strength can be revealed, tested, and shaped in the service of love. Here, men become the kind of men other serious men choose to walk with, struggle alongside, and celebrate life with.
Without this formation, we will likely continue to function well, and may even be praised for our many sacrifices. There will be no dramatic failures, but our strength will lack depth and substance. Playing it safe, the vitality of our hearts slowly fades. And in the end, we are left living lives that are not worthy of our strength – robbing both ourselves and those we love from the fullness of life that was ours to reveal.
The RISE Crucible exists for men who recognize their need for formation and are ready to step into this deeper work of becoming. It is not for everyone. It is for the few. And it will ask something of you.
To those, welcome.
Our orientation as men is not given. It is earned.
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