Chapter 11: Advanced Training: Experiencing the Good that God Is Up To

The more I explored the subject of the Father’s Training, I found there is more to write! This chapter became necessary because there was too much training for one chapter to hold.

I began to see our Training as two levels, Basic—for those starting to come awake, and Advanced—for those who are winning more battles than they are losing.

We don’t graduate, but we can and are to become accomplished. We are never im- mune, but we do learn—through both wisdom and revelation—how to live well, how to get hit less, and how to fall less. Mastering the finer points of a Beloved Son/ Warrior life—including hearing God’s instruction, engaging in spiritual warfare, and guarding his heart—a man can then model and show others how to do the same. And we need more men who can show others how!

Advanced Training is not so much about telling others but rather showing others by simply being. The affect of a man on the lives of others is significant. As a man learns to walk with God in a dangerous for good way (a way that his affect is significantly glo- rious rather than wounding and unfortunate) lives around him will change!

The stories in this chapter of pornography are intended to bring up this issue. This may be a place to camp out. Don’t be afraid to explore with your men, hear their stories, and tell yours. The casualties through the enemy’s work in porn are catastroph- ic—beyond count and measure. Few men ever talk about this. Often secret addictions seldom see the light needed to be shown on this dark, dark place. I suggest you take some time to prepare, step in, take a few deep breaths, and share of your struggle and hopefully your victories in the areas of porn, masturbation, and sexual compromise. Don’t glorify your sin in this area but please don’t be afraid to share it.

More on the subject of pornography in Chapter 13, Loving a Woman, and why men are plagued by this temptation and sin. Sex must be a very glorious thing if it has been so twisted, falsely promoted, and so many suffer from its perversions.

A trained man is an oriented man who is alert and has his wits about him. He lives with perspective and is discerning. Even when you’re on vacation, the battle goes with you. It may even intensify as your expectation for rest, time with family, and breaking away to recharge can set you up for the false self to attempt to sneak in, emerge on the scene and the enemy’s schemes and plots to jump you and take you and your family out with a surprise attack. Warriors are not surprised.

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Training in the spiritual disciplines and keeping the important questions current are always important: Who am I now? What am I now? Where am I now? NOW!

With a Warrior’s freedom comes the responsibility to make no new agreements and no new judgments. A Warrior learns how to receive and offer forgiveness. This is a big one: A Warrior doesn’t run alone. A Warrior runs with other oriented friends—Be- loved Sons that live as brothers. Their eyes, ears, antd hearts are critical to the main- tenance of and advancing of his role in the Larger Story.

This is a chapter on mastering an Art; the practice of a particular craft. We can be- come and should be becoming more and more like Jesus.