Godly Young Man

I love watching the Lord provide.  I've been praying for the Lord's help in my relationship with my 14-year-old son.  In many ways, it's easier being the mother of a teen daughter than son because our common interests make it easier to relate to my daughter. We also spend a lot of time working together, and we have read many books together about being a godly young woman. 

I find reading books with my children to be a relationship-building experience as it opens the door to communicate about those difficult-to-broach topics, but I have a hard time finding appropriate books for these discussions with my son.  So I was specifically praying to find a book that I could read and discuss with my son that would promote growth both in our relationship and in his relationship with the Lord.

Shortly after this request, I received a package in the mail.  Crossway books sent me the book Disciplines of a Godly Young Man written by R. Kent Hughes and Carey Hughes for me to review.  I knew immediately I would like it--it was, after all, an answer to prayer.

Now that I've read it through (and have read and discussed the first four chapters so far with my son) I can share specifically what I like about it.

• The format:  The book is written in short chapters which makes it less intimidating to read.  Each chapter addresses a different discipline and is packed full of relevant points and illustrations.
• The tone:  The authors are a father/son duo and this tone works very nicely.  They don't talk down to the reader, nor are they overly buddy-buddy with the reader.  They communicate with both a fatherly tone of spiritual maturity and a more youthful, in-the-trenches commiseration.  They are honest and relevant, both with the content and the tone.
• Scriptural support:  They dissect several Scriptures which make for an interesting and insightful study.  They don't just use a verse here and there to support a point they want to make; rather, they focus on passages of Scripture and pull several points out of the Scripture.  One example is in the discipline of perseverance in which they overview Hebrews 11 and then, from chapter 12 verses 1-2, expound on the themes 1) Strip down, 2) Run, 3) Focus and 4) Consider.
• Needful:  Our young men need books like this.  It is well-rounded in the topics it covers and includes something for everyone.  The authors are not afraid to set the standard high--right up there with God's standard.  Being a godly young man is not something that just happens.  We parents must be intentional in teaching them what godliness is, and this book is a wonderful tool toward that end.  Our young men must also be intentional in striving toward godliness.  This book fills a void in the genre as I have been looking for sometime for a book of this quality.  (I am open to other recommendations if you know of any, by the way.)

My son is diligent in reading the Bible daily, but sometimes it's an intellectual exercise without the application.  Adding a reading of Disciplines of a Godly Young Man will, I hope, encourage him to think more deeply about the Word and to examine himself in light of what God's Word says.  So far he is really getting a lot out of it and we have enjoyed meaningful discussions of the questions at the end of each chapter.

If you have a teen-aged young man in your life, I highly recommend this book.  (There was only one very minor point I disagreed with, namely that of a young man's "work, be it ever so humble, is a divine calling" (114).  I crossed out calling and wrote in commandment as I don't see scriptural support for specific jobs being a "calling", but rather God has commanded man to work from as early as the keeping of the Garden.)  I love the authors' theme:

Train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every other way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.  The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance.  I Timothy 4:7-9