牧者心聲
成為上主的勇士
周曉暉牧師
2024 年 6 月 15 日 / 16 日
Click here for English
男人的天空，得來實不易。
曾於網絡搜尋器鍵入「男士事工」，結果傳來了多篇文章，其中有以下幾篇，諸位可以看看其中有甚麼共同點：
一、區聯會《宣道牧函》「教會中年男士的心靈牧養」（2005年10月）；
二、世界華福中心文章《中年男士事奉的困惑、危機與契機》（2007年7月）；
三、真證傳播的特稿《男女失衡現象反映男士被忽略》（2008年）。
原來三篇文章均是出自北宣家人手筆，依次是：譚廣海牧師、龔柏成執事、萬得康牧師。這些搜尋結果，可以被理解為北宣家對弟兄生命的關注——從看見缺乏，到熱切推動，其中亦有實踐神學的反省。當我思想立在當下、面向未來，我不禁問：北宣家的弟兄們，還需要學習甚麼呢？
我隨之想起《勇氣——挺身而出的男子漢》（Stepping Up: A Call to Courageous Manhood）這書，書中為「勇氣」下了個定義：「『勇氣』不是沒有懼怕，而是經過評估之後，知道還有比懼怕更重要的東西。」在甚麼時候男人需要這種「勇氣」呢？不正是在複雜、多變、困難的處境嗎？於我而言，這是需要學習的。
這些處境可以是個人的，包括罪與陰暗面、婚姻紅燈、事業懸崖、家庭重擔等。而我等男人需要的「勇氣」，就是不任由事情變壞，反以「勇氣」作出改變。而這份「勇氣」絕非「清兵心口掛個勇字」般硬闖硬碰、意氣用事，不！
「勇氣」其實是思考——審慎評估；「勇氣」亦是赴諸行動——護衛重要的東西。誠然，每個年代，都有人無法避開的苦難；每個年代，都有需要護衛的人和事。家庭、教會、社群以至於世界，都需要男士們展現這份「勇氣」。尤其當有多人未聞福音，誰去將最珍貴的福音傳給他們？當家庭遭逢艱困，誰憑信心站穩？當教會沒有領袖，誰願意承擔，迎難而上呢？
我期待弟兄們能與我一起鼓起「勇氣」，慎思明辨，帶著使命去拼命（fight for God's cause），持守神交付我們的福音真理和人生。
弟兄們，在未來的日子，讓我們一起發出更大的光芒，活現上主造男人的特質——「勇氣」，成為上主的勇士！有一天，當我們生命走向終結、自問一生有否活現勇氣之際，但願我們都能自豪地回答：「那美好的仗我已經打過了」（提後四7）。
The "sky of men" is really hard-won.
I once put the words "men's ministry" into a search engine. Among the many articles that popped up were the three below. I wonder if you can see any similarities among them:
- "Pastoring the Hearts of Middle-aged Men in the Church" in Pastoral Letters in October 2005 by Christian & Missionary Alliance Church Union Hong Kong
- "The Perplexities, Crises and Opportunities of Middle-aged Men in Their Ministries" in an article collection in July 2007 by Chinese Coordination Centre of World Evangelization
- "How the Men-Women Imbalance Tells Us about Men Being Ignored" in a featured article in 2008 by Goodnews Communication International Ltd.
All three of them were written by NPAC people, respectively, Rev. Samuel Tam (譚廣海牧師), Deacon P. S. Kung (龔柏成執事) and Rev. Isaac Man (萬得康牧師). These articles can be understood as the NPAC family's concern for the lives of our brothers. The writers saw the need and passionately took their initiatives forward, with reflections on practical theology in some. Looking ahead from where we stand now, I have a question: Brothers of the NPAC family, what else do we need to learn?
At this point, a book entitled Stepping Up: A Call to Courageous Manhood comes to my mind. The author quoted Ambrose Redmoon for a definition of "courage": "Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important."
When would men need such "courage"? It is when we are faced with complicated, volatile and difficult situations. To me, this is something we need to learn.
These situations may be personal: sin and gloom, marriage problems, career cliffs, family burdens, etc. What our men need is the "courage" not to allow things to go bad, "courage" to change. We do not need the "courage" label that Manchu soldiers wore on their chest. We do not need raw courage, nor foolhardiness. No!
"Courage" really is thinking – careful assessment. "Courage" is also action – preserving what is really important. There is no doubt that in every era, there is bound to be hardship. In every era, there are people and things that need to be safeguarded. The family, the church, the community and the whole world – they all need men to live out their "courage".
It is especially so when many have not heard of the gospel. Who will preach the most precious gospel to them? When the family meets difficulties, who will stand firm by faith? When the church has no leaders, who will take up the responsibility and sail against the tide?
I look forward to our brothers taking out "courage" with me, to think carefully and discern clearly, and to fight for God's cause. I look forward to our persistence to advance God's mandate of gospel truth and the life He has entrusted to us.
Brothers, in the days to come, let us make our light shine brighter. Let us live out the characteristic that the LORD has created in men – "courage." Let us be courageous men of the LORD!
On the day when we come to the end of our lives, when we ask ourselves whether we have lived out courage in our lives, may we be able to proudly answer: "I have fought the good fight." (2 Timothy 4:7)
| 返回頁首 Back to Top |