History and tales alike have highlighted the need for men to link arm-and-arm to endure great suffering or to achieve a common goal. Nehemiah, while rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem during great opposition, said to the people of God, “Remember the great and awe-inspiring Lord, and fight for your countrymen, your sons and daughters, your wives and homes” (Neh. 4:14). The call led men to take up both sword and trowel. Building the wall, while awaiting the summons of the ram’s horn to rally together to fight against the enemy (v.16-23). Recall the people of Israel, in Judges 20, who rallied as one body to wage war against the tribe of Benjamin. One translation describes them as being “as one man, with one mind, and one counsel” against their foe (v.11). We can look forward to King Alfred, who during his reign of Wessex (871-899) waged battle against the Viking horde. Utilizing the impenetrable shield wall, withstood and conquered the persistent onslaught of the Danes. Lastly, we can gaze up to the rising slopes of Mount Doom, from J.R.R Tolkien’s novel The Return of the King, as two little Hobbits strove together through much suffering to rid the world of the evil of the One Ring and Souron. These historical accounts and tales move our hearts to the words of Psalm 133:1, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell in unity!”
During the February Men’s Legacy session, men traveled from across the U.S. to meet at the hill tops of the SkyRose Ranch. Weary from travel and burdened by many afflictions and hardship, the students quickly bonded through shared experiences and the vast feasts provided by kind caretakers of the ranch. However, it was not long into the week when these men noticed that they also shared a greater need: Christ, the Lord and Savior.
Early on during the course, instructors opened God’s Word to address the subjects of Character, Discipline, and Brotherhood. These classes drew the student’s attention away from the worldly view of the self-made man and lone ranger to our Brother (Heb 2:11) who embodied the fruits of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23) and endured the cross (Heb. 12:2). Mid-week, the students learned about the truths of PTSd, the joys of Forgiveness, as well as Our Common Enemy – Satan and his minions. Provided with an armament of other courses, these strengthened warriors were not left without a battle plan, or rather, a Legacy Plan. At week’s end, taught and trained in the 4 B’s, men deliberated on how to utilize God’s Word, Prayer, Fellowship, and their Cornerman to both sustain them and prepare for future skirmishes against the flesh.
While the students arrived solitary and downtrodden, they departed with their eyes set on the King, brothers clad in the armor of God, and songs of praise in their hearts. The February session is a testament of how brothers, wielding the shield of faith and sword of the Spirit, like Nehemiah, can build walls of faithful legacies or like Israel, with shouts of praise, destroyed the city walls of Jericho (Josh. 6).
May you sing like the men of Rohan who “burst into song, and they sang as they slew, for the joy of battle was on them,” because “the Lord your God is in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness (Zeph 3:17).
