Modern Disciple Magazine for Men (MDM4M), published in Canada JUNE / JULY 2004

Cover

One-On-One with Jeff Frankenstein by Ryan Richardson

Socially Acceptable Sin by Jeff Consiglio

The Music of Duvall by Justin Taylor

More Than Accountability by Andrew Chamberlin

God in the Wild by Stephen Barkley

The Pond or the Power by Warwick Cooper

Surrender by Alan Penner

LifeLine by Quinn McFarlane

Viva III by Ryan Richardson

The Pond or the Power?
by Warwick Cooper

Some say he fell in love with his twin sister. Others said it was because she looked so much like him and it was really himself that he loved. He would spend his days peering into the still reflection of his face in the pool of a nearby glen. His true love was the nymph Echo who had been cursed by the Queen of heaven to only speak the last few words of the last thing she had heard. Spurned by the only one she had ever loved she fled into the forest never to be seen again. And so the myth of Narcissus has passed down to us. His name now rests on the flower that was supposed to have grown in his vacant place by the pool. It also represents a culture that is enamored with itself so much so that it is no longer capable of supporting healthy relationships with others. That culture is ours.

At the beginning of the 21st century we see our young men and women sitting and gazing into the still stagnant pools of the media reflecting back to them the dark echo's of their inner souls. Why the need for real intimacy when false intimacy is so readily available? Six 'friends' on TV are there every Thursday. They are entertaining, witty, understanding and just like me really. Narcissus had a lot to offer others but was unaware of what they wanted from him. He was in search of himself. There was a part of him that was a deep mystery. He was stuck in an endless loop of self-reflection. He found no way to escape. He became older but not wiser.

Modern man is committed to excellence. Committed to pursuing, enjoying, pleasure. And in our pursuit we monitor our sexuality only slightly, believing, 'if it feels good, it can't be wrong.' We leave the door of our minds open to every passing thought, feeling we can handle it ourselves. Our minds are inundated with every sexual thought imaginable. Stephen Arterburn, in his book, Every man's Battle, writes of the businessman who asks, 'How far can I go and still be called a Christian?' rather that asking "How holy can I be?"

I challenge every male reader of this article to ask that question. You and I both know the thoughts that regularly enter our minds in a normal day. Some of our thoughts are life giving and nourishing. Others have an agenda and come with a price - our very soul.

The subject of false intimacy is the single largest struggle in lives of men who visit Counselors and Therapists today. In a book entitled False Intimacy, Dr. Harry W. Schaumburg states that intimacy is the underlying need in a man's life. He contrasts false intimacy (a self-created illusion in which a person seeks pleasure without relationship) with real intimacy (an honest relationship between two people wherein pain and self-doubt exist, but also true commitment and love).

False intimacy, he says, is what people find when they dabble in pornography, phone sex, sexual affairs and other manifestations of sexual addiction. They find short-term pleasure, but long-term emptiness. False intimacy does not promote closeness, trust and support because the intimacy is not founded in a committed relationship.

Continued on Page 2.

All articles in MDM4M are copyright the author. Opinions and views are solely those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the opinions of MDM4M.