Want to be a better man? Love Jesus. And, if you love Him, you will obey Him.
In Galatians 5, Paul tells us that the fruits of sin (not obeying God) are the opposite of the fruits of the Spirit. In other words, loving God and obeying Him leads to the Holy Spirit working in us.
God’s Holy Spirit working in you has a radical impact. The Bible says it leads us to love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control—all the things we want! When I notice that I am not being the man I want to be—when I’m short with my wife, impatient with my kids, unkind, selfish an harsh—trying harder to be a nice guy never seems to work. Instead, when I repent— confess my shortcomings to God and ask Him to help me love Jesus more than anything else—He responds. His Holy Spirit works in me and changes me. And He can change you too. MIMBS 5

Which fruits of the Spirit are the least evident in your life?

Talk with some guys about these struggles.
Share which fruits you see the most in each other.
Pray together that God will change your hearts through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Daily Reading: Ezra 3:1-4:23,
1 Corinthians 2:6-3:4, Psalm
28:1-9, Proverbs 20:24-25

“Love God and do what you want,” said St. Augustine, perhaps the greatest theologian that has ever walked the face of the earth.
Augustine understood Jesus. When asked what the greatest commandment was, Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:5. Augustine was merely paraphrasing Jesus. When you do love God this way, you will want to do everything that God wants you to do. Loving God with the totality of your being leads to obeying Him in the same way. It’s performance out of the overflow of relationship— not the other way around. Obeying God so that He will love you is making God’s actions dependent on yours. That’s an approach that is perfectly designed to produce either pride or guilt.
Christianity is loving God with everything you’ve got—it’s a system perfectly designed to produce obedience. So go ahead: Love God and do what you want. If you really love Him, ou’ll want to do what He wants!
MIMBS 5

Do you love God with your heart, mind, soul, and strength?

Talk with some other men about areas you might be holding back on.

Pray that your love for God would lead to willingly and joyfully following His will.

Daily Reading: Ezra 1:1-2:70, 1 Corinthians
1:18-2:5, Psalm 27:7-14, Proverbs 20:22-23

Why is it so hard to do the things you want
to do or to be the man you want to be?
Nearly every man wants to be a better man,
a better husband or a better father. Yet too
often, we simply don’t execute.
You didn’t wake up this morning wanting
to be a worse man, a worse husband
or a worse father. If you did, you certainly
wouldn’t be reading a devotional magazine!
Yet, even though you want to be better, and
even though you have a good picture
of what that might look
like, you (and I) still don’t measure up to
our own standards. So what is the problem?
The problem isn’t not knowing what to do
(information); it’s not knowing how to do
it (power). If we are going to become the
men God wants us to be, it will not be in
our own strength. Paul shared our struggle:
“What a wretched man I am! Who
will rescue me from this body of death?”
(Romans 7:24). The answer: “Thanks be to
God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (vv.
24–25). Power comes through loving and
obeying Jesus Christ. MIMBS 5

Spend some time asking God to give you His
power through Jesus Christ. In what areas of
your life do you need more of His power?
Daily Reading: 2 Chronicles 35:1-36:23, 1
Corinthians 1:1-17, Psalm 27:1-6, Proverbs
20:21