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Man of God: Leading Your Family by Allowing God to Lead You
What does it take to be a “real” man? You don’t have to be perfect to be a man of God. As Dr. Charles Stanley writes, a man of God is a maturing man, a striving man, a knowledgeable man. And the first step in real manhood is spiritual rebirth. In Man of God, Dr. Stanley asks and answers questions such as What can we learn about manhood from Jesus’s example?How does a true leader allow God to lead him?Why is a godly man “both velvet and steel”?What does it look like to be a provider?What does it mean to lead with sensitivity? Man of God will challenge and equip you to become a better leader, teacher, father, and husband. What makes a man? The answer starts here. Includes study guide for individuals or groups.
208 pages, Hardcover
First published June 1, 2013
185 people are currently reading
550 people want to read
About the author
Charles F. Stanley
555 books684 followersDr. Charles F. Stanley is the senior pastor of First Baptist Church Atlanta, founder of In Touch Ministries, and a New York Times best-selling author who has written more than fifty books, and has sold more than nine million copies. He demonstrates a keen awareness of people's needs and provides Christ-centered, biblically-based principles for everyday life.
Charles Frazier Stanley was born September 25, 1932, in the small town of Dry Fork, Virginia. The only child of Charley and Rebecca Stanley, Charles came into the world during a time when the entire nation felt the grip of the Great Depression. To make matters worse, just nine months later, his father Charley died at the young age of 29.
However, Charles refused to let the Great Depression or the difficulties of his life define him. Instead, like his father and grandfather before him, he clung to God’s Word and took up the mantle to preach the gospel to whoever would listen.
Dr. Stanley’s motivation is best represented by the truth found in Acts 20:24, “Life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about God's mighty kindness and love.” This is because, as he says, “It is the Word of God and the work of God that changes people’s lives.”
Dr. Stanley’s teachings can be heard weekly at First Baptist Church Atlanta, daily on “In Touch with Dr. Charles Stanley” radio and television broadcasts on more than 2,800 stations around the world, on the Internet at intouch.org, through the In Touch Messenger, and in the monthly, award-winning In Touch magazine.
Charles Frazier Stanley was born September 25, 1932, in the small town of Dry Fork, Virginia. The only child of Charley and Rebecca Stanley, Charles came into the world during a time when the entire nation felt the grip of the Great Depression. To make matters worse, just nine months later, his father Charley died at the young age of 29.
However, Charles refused to let the Great Depression or the difficulties of his life define him. Instead, like his father and grandfather before him, he clung to God’s Word and took up the mantle to preach the gospel to whoever would listen.
Dr. Stanley’s motivation is best represented by the truth found in Acts 20:24, “Life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about God's mighty kindness and love.” This is because, as he says, “It is the Word of God and the work of God that changes people’s lives.”
Dr. Stanley’s teachings can be heard weekly at First Baptist Church Atlanta, daily on “In Touch with Dr. Charles Stanley” radio and television broadcasts on more than 2,800 stations around the world, on the Internet at intouch.org, through the In Touch Messenger, and in the monthly, award-winning In Touch magazine.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
May 23, 2018
I read this book for the Tim Challis 2018 reading challenge. This book was for the category to read a book targeted at the opposite gender. So while I have no aspiration to ever be a godly husband or father, there was still application for me. It was definitely directed toward men on every page, but even women can benefit by the principles of allowing God to lead them and being a godly "parent." Dr. Stanley gives more than just pie-in-the-sky theory. An example would be that we need to teach our children to pray by allowing them to hear and see us on our knees in prayer. This is so simple, yet so often overlooked. The book is very practical and an easy read.
August 12, 2022
Charles F. Stanley's book is by no means a long read (without the study guide, it's about 135 pages), and probably more of a "pop-level" Christian book, but that simply means that it'll be accessible to most Christians. And it doesn't really need to be anything else. The pages are full of advice and guidance on how we men should be as godly husbands and fathers. The advice is accessible, but nonetheless challenging: Stanley doesn't shy away from the biblical role of the man as head of the household and emphasizes how essential it is for the man to be obedient to Christ above all else. Yet he provides practical advice on what the "Total man" should look like; a man of steel and velvet. I'm neither a husband nor a father yet, but I chose to read this book in part as preparation for that, and hope to read it again (and perhaps even more intently) when that time comes in my life (and perhaps in frequent intervals after that to remind myself and to challenge me on where I am on my journey). There's even an eight-session group study guide in the back which—although I haven't tried it myself—I imagine can be a VERY valuable tool for men to get together to reflect on the contents of the book and build each other up.
Due to the book's accessibility, I would easily recommend this book to every Christian man who wishes to be godly—especially to fathers and husbands, even though you may find that you're failing on a lot of the guidance in the book (but take heart: realizing where you're going wrong takes you a long way towards correcting your path).
Due to the book's accessibility, I would easily recommend this book to every Christian man who wishes to be godly—especially to fathers and husbands, even though you may find that you're failing on a lot of the guidance in the book (but take heart: realizing where you're going wrong takes you a long way towards correcting your path).
July 10, 2017
Amazing read for any man trying to live a better life for himself and his family. Man of God is not just a reminder of how to live a God-centered life but in true Charles Stanley fashion, it's like a father giving you Godly wisdom for life. I was done with it before I knew it. Thank you Ms. Stanley
December 22, 2021
A great book on Dr. Stanley's view of what it means to be a "man of God!" The bar is high for him for us men - was a good study to lead a group of men at our church through this fall. The study questions at the back are very helpful for leaders. Use a whiteboard or chalkboard in the study - will help bring together all the perspectives and feedback each time you meet. Challenging!
June 18, 2019
One of the hardest things for believers that want to follow the Word of God in the modern world is the Biblical mandate of the man being the head of the household. That seems an antiquated idea now, and yet it's there in black and white. Stanley takes this on and quickly explains what it says, why, and how we are to live by it, and he does so in an exemplary way. The burden is on the man to do this job -- which is extremely difficult -- in an equally exemplary way. A man who does it as required of him in Scripture will indeed be welcomed as head of the household by the entire family. A man that wants to use snippets of Scripture as a weapon and evidence of his authority by virtue of gender will draw not only the ire of the family, but of the community as well. Very well done Dr. Stanley.
August 14, 2017
A great practical book from a man of God with much wisdom to share regarding how to be a man, husband, and father who honours God and walks in His ways.
April 9, 2020
Good content.
I praise the Lord for men of God like Charles Stanley. This boook was encouraging and edifying. I feel spurred on to be a more godly man. May it be Lord.
I praise the Lord for men of God like Charles Stanley. This boook was encouraging and edifying. I feel spurred on to be a more godly man. May it be Lord.
November 28, 2020
The title has the potential to be misunderstood for a biography of the writer but the book os actually about you and for you not the writer - Charles F. Stanley. Be a man of God.
January 4, 2023
Makes me thankful for my husband and encourages me to raise my son to be a man of God.
September 27, 2023
Powerful and enlightening read. A must read for all men, husbands, and fathers.
October 13, 2023
Todo hombre que desee desarrollarse acorde al plan original de nuestro Creador encontrará en este libro un hermoso y claro resumen bíblico.
October 18, 2013
There are a number of positive qualities to Charles Stanley’s new book Man of God: Leading Your Family by Allowing God to Lead You. Perhaps one of the most notable traits is how he is able to pick a topic, or metaphor, and carry it through an entire chapter. This gives his book a continuity that is attractive to most men. For example, in his chapter “Man of Steel and Velvet” Stanley explores how a man should be like steel in the first half of the chapter and like velvet in the second half. Additionally, Stanley offers a great deal of scriptural support and incorporates it into what he is saying smoothly and with practiced ease. This provides the Christian reader with a constant confirmation that what is being said is biblical and not simply rehashed secular thought presented by a well-known pastor.
Another striking element of Stanley’s writing is that he asks the reader questions. This not only improves the tone of the writing, making it sound more like a discussion than a lecture, but helps men think introspectively about the various issues Stanley is addressing. This is paralleled by Stanley’s simple point-by-point breakdown followed by a list of suggestions and/or examples for the reader to think about. This highly organized, interactive style will prove attractive to most male readers. Finally, Stanley presents himself as a fallible father and husband. This honest, realistic approach should engender trust and defuse resistance in his readers.
There are a few elements however that could be points of frustration in this book. First, the narrator seems to announce, or perform, more than he shares with the reader. This seems to run contrary to the natural, conversational tone that Stanley was going for. Furthermore, while the structure is advantageous to the novice reader, it can come off as a little formulaic to the more experienced reader. By the end of the book, I was becoming nostalgic for the days of Confronting Casual Christianity and other books by Stanley that were hard hitting and provocative but every bit as helpful and biblical as this book.
In the end, this is a good book for struggling husbands and fathers. There are also the occasional points of thought for the more successful father. Moreover, I would suggest this book to those people in the church who are counseling men and families but lack a formal education. This is an excellent starting point and could prove a good resource for men before their first counseling session. This is a good book even if it doesn’t live up to Stanley’s work from the 80s and the 90s.
Trent Nicholson, Ph.D., D.Min.
Desert Bible Institute, President
Dr. Nicholson is a member of the christianaudio review program. To learn more, visit their website at: http://www.christianaudio.com.
Another striking element of Stanley’s writing is that he asks the reader questions. This not only improves the tone of the writing, making it sound more like a discussion than a lecture, but helps men think introspectively about the various issues Stanley is addressing. This is paralleled by Stanley’s simple point-by-point breakdown followed by a list of suggestions and/or examples for the reader to think about. This highly organized, interactive style will prove attractive to most male readers. Finally, Stanley presents himself as a fallible father and husband. This honest, realistic approach should engender trust and defuse resistance in his readers.
There are a few elements however that could be points of frustration in this book. First, the narrator seems to announce, or perform, more than he shares with the reader. This seems to run contrary to the natural, conversational tone that Stanley was going for. Furthermore, while the structure is advantageous to the novice reader, it can come off as a little formulaic to the more experienced reader. By the end of the book, I was becoming nostalgic for the days of Confronting Casual Christianity and other books by Stanley that were hard hitting and provocative but every bit as helpful and biblical as this book.
In the end, this is a good book for struggling husbands and fathers. There are also the occasional points of thought for the more successful father. Moreover, I would suggest this book to those people in the church who are counseling men and families but lack a formal education. This is an excellent starting point and could prove a good resource for men before their first counseling session. This is a good book even if it doesn’t live up to Stanley’s work from the 80s and the 90s.
Trent Nicholson, Ph.D., D.Min.
Desert Bible Institute, President
Dr. Nicholson is a member of the christianaudio review program. To learn more, visit their website at: http://www.christianaudio.com.
May 13, 2015
This is a very good book for any man who wants to know what it means to be a Man of God. What was God's original intention for man? This is covered in the first chapter, The Real Man. Dr. Stanley reminds us of Adam's purpose and why He made woman for Adam and where it went wrong. Dr. Stanley then describes the two sides of man, steel and velvet. We all know what the man of steel is (no, not Superman), he is a man of conviction, courage, character, confidence and control. But what is a man of velvet? He is a man of care, consideration, cooperation, communication and conduct. Dr. Stanley next explores the three things a man needs to provide for his family: material provision, emotional security and spiritual needs. Of course the material provisions are important, but they are the lesser of the three. We also learn what it means to be a leader for our families.
January 11, 2014
Do you know a man trying to live the Christian life? If so this book would be a great gift as it has wonderful advice and guidance throughout its pages. I would recommend this book to all men to read and therefore gave it a 5/5 stars. The author, Charles Stanley, is a well know preacher. You do not have to like his preaching or even to have heard it to enjoy this book! The pages are easy to read, the chapters flow from one topic to the next and the Lord is honored as the ultimate example for any man to be more like. Overall this is an excellent book!
I would like to thank the publisher for the copy of this book I enjoyed reading. I gave an honest review based on my opinion of what I read.
I would like to thank the publisher for the copy of this book I enjoyed reading. I gave an honest review based on my opinion of what I read.
October 1, 2023
Man of God is a call for men to rise up and be the leaders God is calling them to be. In this work by Charles Stanley, men are directed to the Bible to see not only their calling, and why it is important, but also how to be that man. Charles Stanley uses God's Word to present this call but he also draws upon his own personal experience. This book is very applicable but also very direct and helpful. A great book that men of all ages should read.
April 2, 2017
In Man of God Stanley challenges men to step up and the the leaders that God calls them to be. The issue with the book isn't that it isn't good content but the lackadaisical approach to really delivering the great message that is there. If this were a coach rallying his team the best he could hope for was mediocre.
April 17, 2013
Insightful work on a biblical model of Masculinity in Marriage admonishing men to take up their responsibility for leading their families. Refreshingly straightforward with a wealth of good practical advice for men looking to be the best husbands/leaders/fathers they can be.
February 13, 2015
Excellent. Lots of great advice in here for Dad's. I've read a lot of Parenting magazines. A lot of those articles have a lot of the advice - this advice while it appears to be similar has the backbone of Scripture behind the advice.
July 24, 2014
This is a must read for the man who wants to walk in the wisdom, love, and power of God!
May 22, 2023
Would have rated it 4 stars if It was pertanent with my situation.
December 1, 2016
A homerun. Men everywhere would profit from the principles found here. When I finished this book, I immediately bought two copies and presented them as gifts for a couple of my friends.
January 4, 2014
great direction for all men of god to follow.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews