Real Men (and I'm not talking about Home Depot this time)

Today, I realized one important thing:

The Gospel makes real men.

I'll go as far as to say that any good, devoted religion in a man's life helps to make him a real man.

There's something about putting others first, always being honest, not coveting your neighbors' stuff, keeping morally clean thoughts and actions, and always remembering that God should be involved in every aspect of your life that shapes men into unique, responsible, caring people.

Today, as I talked to a gal a work about her relationships and their ups and downs, she sighed at one point and said something to the effect of, "I just thought he was different. I thought he was that one guy that really could be this good. Then I realized, they all start out different, but in the end they're all the same." As I listened to her, I could feel her pain. I could feel her longing for something better, something she knows must be out there, but something she somehow can't find.

Then, as if remembering something, she said, "Except for your guy! Where did you get him?!"

My response was something about Isaac's good, moral upbringing and how important that is. But my ultimate thought, and my thought long after our conversation was that Isaac is the man he is because of the Gospel. There's nothing else to it, really.

Isaac grew up in a home that taught him how to love and how to be loved. He learned that lying is bad, that immoral thoughts should be controlled and replaced by moral ones. He watched his parents and how much they love each other. He learned that love is work, and it can be hard, but it's so worth it. He learned how to feel emotion, and that crying is ok, and that if he's feeling hurt he can always pray to a loving Heavenly Father. He learned that complete devotion to one person through marriage is more important than anything else he'll ever do in his life. In his childhood, these things were taught to him. But as he grew older, he began to understand them for himself.

Isaac is a real man because he continually chooses to live the Gospel.

And the reality is that because the Gospel is something him and I share so deeply in our relationship, it's a standard that we both hold one another to.

I didn't start out our relationship feeling like I had to mold him into the "good guy" I wanted him to be. I already knew what I could expect of him, because he expected the same thing of himself.

It's interesting to me how strongly I felt about this point as I thought about it today. In a time where society tries to push religion off as being unnecessary or even invasive, it's become increasingly clear what a world without religion looks like. These men without religion continue to try to find ways to be happy, ways that the world is telling them to be happy, but all they find is an unquenchable appetite.

Some of you may be thinking, "But hey, there's this one guy I know who is an atheist and he's really great" or  "I know this guy who has plenty of religion and he's the worst." In both of those instances, I completely agree that there are exceptions to this idea. Not all people everywhere follow the standard. But if we're looking for a standard to follow that would turn out as many "real men" as possible, the Gospel would be it.

Such destructive cycles between men and women have been shown in the scriptures time and time again. All I wonder is what kind of plague, natural disaster, or utter destruction will it take for our society to find the good again? What will it take to find more "real men" in our society?

I don't really have an answer for that. But I know that I'm truly blessed to have real men in my life. I also know that I will continue to fight for the real men in my life and the values that they follow until the day I die.