Ep. 273: How to Raise Godly Men in a Confused Culture | Dr. Jerome Gay Jr.

What does biblical manhood actually look like—and how do you raise sons who understand it in a culture sending them conflicting messages about what it means to be a man? Pastor and author Jerome Gay Jr. joins Kent and Lawson to talk about raising godly men, emotional maturity, respect, father wounds, and why Jesus—not social media influencers or cultural stereotypes—must be our ultimate model for masculinity. Jerome shares lessons from his new book, How to Speak Man: Discovering the Respect Languages Men Need, including the five "respect languages" of significance, support, sex, silence, and space. He also explains why men need to learn how to acknowledge and communicate their emotions without being controlled by them. They discuss how dads can move from constantly telling their kids what they're against to giving them a compelling vision of what they're for, how to teach sons biblical apologetics in the age of smartphones, and why fathers need to be "compelling, not combative" when engaging both their children and the culture. Jerome also speaks directly to the dad who feels like he has already blown it. Your upbringing, failures, and mistakes may have consequences—but they do not have to permanently define the kind of father you become. In this episode: Raising boys into godly men Biblical masculinity and the example of Jesus Helping sons develop emotional maturity Recovering from an unhealthy relationship with your own father The five respect languages men need Creating safety and communication in marriage Teaching kids apologetics and biblical truth Becoming a compelling, not combative, Christian dad What to do when you feel like you've failed as a father If you want to lead your family with greater courage, tenderness, wisdom, and purpose, this conversation will give you practical biblical tools to start. Get Jerome Gay Jr.'s book: How to Speak Man: Discovering the Respect Languages Men Need on amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GS47NZ8H You are not a father on accident. Go be a Father On Purpose. Want to shape the direction of the show this year? Leave us a voicemail and tell us what you're facing as a dad: manhoodjourney.org/podcast Scroll down to "What's Your Story?" and leave us a message! ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Learn more about our new partners here: https://maninthemirror.org/ Download the Iron Circle worksheet here: https://manhoodjourney.org/iron-circle/ We've launched video now! Check out the video version of today's episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/GZRrFtALxYE ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Range Leather: Support the show and upgrade your fatherhood swag. Visit rangeleather.com/mj to score 10% off your next order! Grab some fresh beans! https://rangecoffee.com/ Fatherhood Guard – The Fatherhood Guard is now 100+ members strong! Join the fight for God-honoring fatherhood. Connect with dads from over 25 states and at least 3 countries by joining today. Grab your Range Leather welcome hat at https://manhoodjourney.org/donate/fatherhood-guard/ Buy Kent's latest book "Don't Bench Yourself" on Amazon: https://a.co/d/1qBF3RJ Read the new State Of Biblical Fatherhood report here: http://manhoodjourney.org/sobf Find tools to share the report here: https://manhoodjourney.org/sobf-tools Have a topic you want us to touch on? Well, get in touch! Send us an email at: [email protected] ------------------------------------------------------------------------- About our hosts: Kent Evans is the Executive Director and co-founder of Manhood Journey, a ministry that helps dads become disciple-makers. After a twenty-year career as a business leader, he embarked on biblical Fatherhood ministry projects. He's appeared on television, radio, web outlets and podcasts. He's spoken at parenting and men's events, and authored four books. The first, Wise Guys: Unlocking Hidden Wisdom from the Men Around You, was written to help men learn how to find mentors and wise counsel. The latest, Don't Bench Yourself: How to Stay in the Game Even When You Want to Quit, aims to help dads stay present in their roles as fathers and husbands even when they feel like giving up. Kent's life has been radically affected by godly mentors and his lovely wife, April. They have been married thirty years and have five sons and one daughter-in-law. He lives in Louisville, Kentucky. Lawson Brown is husband to his high school sweetheart, a father of two young adult daughters, has been a business leader since 1995, and is a former Marine. He served as a small group leader for teenage boys for many years, helped start the Christian media ministry City on a Hill Productions, then later Sanctuary – a new church in Kennesaw, GA – where he served as its leader for Men's Ministry. Lawson's journey of faith has always been centered in a grounding from his wife, Audrey, and supported throughout by many men whom he's found as brothers along the way. His family is nearing an empty nest phase and has recently relocated to the Florida Gulf Coast beaches area.