You need a man cave. It may not be the classic basement chill room with leather couches, lava lamps, bar and fridge, pool table, some weights, and gigantic TV. But pick a spot and make it your own. And pleasantly request from your lover and family, that the space is yours. Don't touch anything.

Maybe your man cave is a home office. With your table/desk, your computer, and books and papers all over the place. Maybe there's an old sandwich and beer under a pile of clothes. But that's okay.

It's your room. It's a place to get quiet, pray, meditate, and relax.

Manspace can have inside it some expression of who you are. Manspace can be about establishing your identity as a man. Any guy who has a interest, hobby or work is going to want some space to indulge that. Check out how to make your own manspace. 

It's your cave. Your space. Your sanctuary. It's a mess? Sure. And everybody better be okay with that. Once in a while, I'll clean my man cave. It's a place where I paint, work on my computer, and listen to music. Loudly. 

Compared with the rest of the house, my space is a bit of a mess, but it's organized the way I like it. And my wife's cool with that. My three daughters too. And I'm grateful for that. I'm thankful that my wife and kids have set aside a place where I can read, paint, think big thoughts, do whatever I want, maybe nothing. 

Here's the point: I need a spot in my house to call my own. My man cave. And I recommend this fact for you. Wives need their husbands to have a man cave just as much as men need to have one. 

You may be interested in reading about making a list for her to see.
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Hey, man. You're not perfect. You make mistakes. And everyone around you knows it. Particularly your lover. But don't be too hard on yourself. Big deal: you said something stupid, you left the toilet seat up, you spent too much money, you could put on a clean shirt more often, you don't complete projects you start, you forgot something important again, etc. You have some flaws and some minor shortcomings. We understand. 

Your lover can deal with your imperfections in a few ways.

She can overlook the occasional slip-up. Why bring something up and make something big out of something small, like forgetting to use the coaster on the coffee table? 

She can mention them in a loving manner, such as, "Last night, I almost had to call 911, because I sat on the toilet and almost got stuck because the seat was up. Ha! Oh, man. I love it so much that you put the seat down for me. I'd hate for the fire department to come and rescue me." 

She can spin the negative into a positive. Turn lemons into lemonade. If you can't quite finish the yard work, she'll find a neighborhood teenager to help for a few bucks. You forget to do the dishes, she'll play music and dance with ya while you both empty the dishwasher. Your dirty shirt doesn't fit as well as it used to, so she'll surprise you with a quick coffee-and-shirt-shopping date. 

She can like them as being part of who you are. As I grow more mature in my marriage, I tend to enjoy and cherish those little things my wife does that may or may not have not been so enjoyable in the far past. I like how loud she sneezes, how emotionally charged she can get over something important or not so important, I like how she keeps expanding her closet, and I like how she needs not one but two napkins. It's funny how little things that once may have been a little annoying are now endearing and can be cherished. 

When someone makes a mistake, when they fall short, when they do something a bit irritating, you have a choice. You can choose to argue over it and make it a big deal, or you can choose to handle it in another way that is founded on peace, understand, and love. When we realize that none of us is perfect, we can both forgive others and ourselves.

And then remember that you're the luckiest (most blessed) man on Earth because your lover is a part of you. You may be interested in how two become one in "Fulfilling a Masculine Role." 
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The words we speak are powerful.  The words we speak can bring life and peace.  The words we speak can affect others either positively or negatively. 

In Proverbs 18:21, it says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue….”  That’s a lot of power!

With our words, we have the power to bring life and peace to others. Here are two practical ways to help us accomplish this:  (1) We can pause before we speak, and (2) we can aim for and pursue peace as we speak.  Pause means a temporary stop or rest, maybe you stop because of uncertainty.

Here are two verses that help us to pause before we speak:

• Proverbs 29:20: Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? There is more hope of a fool than of him.
• James 1:19: Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak….

By pausing before we speak, we can consciously decide to speak words that bring life and peace and refrain from speaking words that don’t do that. 

Some situations we encounter are more complicated than others. Especially in these situations, it is important to be slow to speak, not hasty in our words.

We see Jesus Christ operating this principle (swift to hear, slow to speak) in a very challenging situation (a situation between life and death).  In the record of John 8, the scribes and Pharisees asked Jesus a question with the goal of tempting him in order to condemn him. Jesus’ response would directly affect the life of a woman brought before him, who had been accused by men of committing adultery.
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John 8:1-13:

1. Jesus went unto the mount of Olives.
2. And early in the morning he came again into the temple court, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them.
3. And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst. (They made her stand in the center of the court. They put her on trial.)
4. They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act.
5. Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?  (So what do you say to do with her—what is your sentence?”)
6. This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. (He paused.)
7. So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.
8. And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.
9. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience (the inner sense of what is right or wrong) went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.
10. When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?
11. She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.
12. Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

In Colossians 3:16, it says, "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom."   The word refers to the lesson learned from certain situations, such as the one in John 8 with Jesus and the woman.  Let that word (that life lesson) dwell in your heart and mind.  Let it permeate every aspect of your being, as you learn, teach, and share spiritual lessons from life.  And admonish (counsel or advise) and train one another with all spiritual wisdom.  That's what Colossians says. 

The Standard

Keeping God’s Word as our standard, we have a great resource to help communicate words that can lift a burden, lighten a heart, and bring life and peace.   When the Word dwells richly in our hearts—when we are reading and thinking it consistently—it is easier to pause, bring those edifying words of life and peace to mind, and speak them to others.

Follow After Peace

Another practical way we can help assure that our words will bring life and peace to others is to follow after peace.  Pursue peace. 

In Romans 14:19, it says, "Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another."  The Greek word translated “follow after” means to pursue.  That is an active word!  It reminds me of our Constitution’s preamble, which says, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men AND WOMEN are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”

As we make up our minds to actively pursue what makes for peace and rest and harmony, our words will reflect this. We frame our communications with the aim of bringing life and peace.

How We Say Things

One way we can actively pursue peace in our speech is by watching how we say things, not just what we say.  When our body language and tone reflect peace, others are more likely to be peaceful also.  Pursuing peace gives us a head start in speaking words that bring life and peace to others.

Summary

In summary, we have learned that the words we speak are powerful.  Our words can bring life and peace as we choose to base our communications on a standard—God’s Word.  As we allow the Word of God to dwell in us richly, we can pause and bring His words of life and peace to our minds and mouths—especially in challenging situations.  As we aim for and pursue peace, our communications will reflect the truth of God’s Word in our hearts.  We will see that our words do have power to bring life and peace to others.

Read other articles for men related to life and peace. 
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Here's some of the things that I really enjoy: Seeing my wife smile and laugh, Bourbon on ice after a hard day at work, hearing my kids laughing, working on a house project that is physically demanding and makes my hands rough and dirty, smelly bubbly show soap, words spoken in love, a compliment on my looks or what I'm wearing, a good verse that applies to a life situation, mashed potatoes, vanilla ice cream, Pittsburgh Steelers, 70's Rock music, my wife's body inside a beautiful dress, touch, and a good meaty sandwich with crispy-cold lettuce and real mayo. I'll stop there. There's a lot more. But that's a pretty good list right there. Yup.