 Before you turn on the TV or log into Facebook tonight, take about thirty minutes, sit down, with a pen and paper. Draw a vertical line down the paper and make two columns. Divide your life into major areas— husband, father, church, job, friends, hobbies, health, etc. Mine would be husband, father, work, family, friends. ARE YOU FAILING? Then, as honestly as you can, ask yourself if you're failing in any of these. Do you need help with any of these areas? Circle any problem areas and write down one or two things you could do to improve them. I used to installed radon mitigation systems in homes. A radon mitigation system is a combination of pipes and a fan that sucks air from underneath a home and, thereby, creates a low air pressure area, which attracts radon gas percolating from the ground prior to entering the house. Every day, I'd "pull maintenance," which means to make sure that the crew was supplied with everything they needed in order to do their jobs for the day. Pulling maintenance included taking inventory, taking account on what was running low, and filling up the truck with fittings, pipe, glue and fans. It also included making sure the drills were in working order, the diamond-tipped bits were still sharp, and the vacuums and filters were cleaned. It was critical that we pulled maintenance. Our success in installing mitigation systems depended upon how well we pulled maintenance. It was critical to our business. I now find myself, many years later, pulling maintenance on my life, and helping other men do the same. What areas in your life are you low on supplies? Are you checking the major areas in your life and making sure they're ready to go, in working order, clean and sharp? CONSIDER YOUR WAYS It is written [Haggai 1:5-7] to consider your ways and set your mind on what has come to you. Maybe you have sown much, but you have reaped little. You eat, but do you have enough? You drink, but you do not have your fill? You clothe your family, but no one is warm. And you work and earn wages, but you put them in a bag with holes in it. Thus, consider your ways (your previous and present conduct) and how you have fared. ASK YOUR WIFE If you're married, show your wife your list of major areas, and ask her, "Babe, if you could name just one area in which you think I'm not the best, what would it be?” Only brave men do this. If you have a group of buddies that you're close to, you ask them. At the heart of all these major areas is the question, “What really matters?” What really matters to you? What do you want to accomplish in life? When you die, and people hear the news and think about you, what would you like them to think and say about you? What are you doing now to ensure that they think and say those things? Do you think you need help? Are you living life to the fullest, are you the best at who you are and what you do? Are you living like a king? Would your wife and friends agree? How would your best buds describe "being a man”? How would you describe "living like a king?" SOCRATES Socrates said that the unexamined life is not worth living. Socrates' method of self-examination included talking with a close friend, spouse, therapist or spiritual advisor to help reveal those weak areas in our lives that we cannot see and work on by ourselves. CONSCIOUSNESS, LEADERSHIP, AND LOVE What makes a man? What does it take to live like a king?
The King's Guide explains each one of these things: Consciousness, Leadership, and Love. A man's greatest fulfillment in life does not come from money, recognition, material goods or sex. His greatest fulfillment in life comes from being a man and living like a king. His children are his kingdom and his wife his queen. LIVE LIKE A KING The King's Guide will help you live like a king, and: understand women; build a beautiful marriage; stand as the head of your household; respect your wife and children; succeed in your work; and become a provider, a protector and a builder of society. If you enjoyed that article, you may be interested in reading "The Steel Qualities of a Man."
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