I’m writing a book. 

If you’d like to help, I could use it.  But first...

Here’s the backstory:

Have you ever had one of those strange moments where the plans for an entire project is downloaded into your heart instantly?

I sit regularly in Gathering Grounds Coffee Shop in Huron, OH (I’m sitting there now to write this) to work, write, and relax. 

I had been thinking a lot about wisdom, Biblical manhood, and conversations I’d had with a local group of men I meet regularly with.

A thought rumbled from my gut, ascended my spine, shot through my heart, and straight into my head:

“The Seven Archetypes of God’s Man.”

It had the same feeling as staring at the floor, seeing a hundred dollar bill belonging to no-one, and picking it up as my own found treasure. 

A discovery instead of something I made. 

Next, with a pen in hand, I asked myself a question…

"What would those seven archetypes actually be?" 

I listed out everything that came to mind in that moment:

• King
• Prophet
• Priest
• Lover
• Warrior
• Healer
• Sage

Then I counted them.

There were seven.

Seven to match the title. 

I’d love to say this kind of thing happens to me all the time, but it doesn’t. It felt like a gift. So I started writing immediately…

…and then stopped… 

For over a year. 

Dumb.

In that last couple weeks, I decided I need to steward better what was given to me. So, I’m picking it up again, and I hope you’ll join me. 

Here’s three ways you can help. 

First, you can just keep reading this letter, and let me know what you think. Some of you frequently feed back on my letters, and I appreciate it.  

In my letters, I’ll be sharing a few gems from the book, as well as “trimmings” that are good but don’t make the final book. 

Maybe I’ll call them “burnt ends.”

You know what burnt ends are, don’t you? They’re the very thin parts of the brisket, that when smoked, because they’re so thin, end up kind of overcooked, burnt, crispy. Some smokehouses decided not not waste them, soaked them in BBQ sauce, and gave them away free. 

Yes, they’re delicious in their own right. So good that some smokehouses started selling them as a unique side. 

In the writing process, a lot gets cut that wouldn’t pass in a book. Sometimes it’s a space issue, sometimes you’re sparing the reader by exercising brevity. But they’re still good ideas in their own right. I’ll be sharing those in these letters, with you. Let me know what you think. 

Second, I’ll be looking for beta readers as the book hits middle stage. I want to write as useful a book as possible, so early feedback is essential. This will involve reading an online copy and commenting on the content. If you want in on this, just reply to this email with your name and best email, and I will put you on the beta reader list. 

Third, if you’re looking to crush a few problem areas in your life, I already use these principles that will be in the book to coach men, ministries, and businesses. I don’t discount my coaching, but you will get the most affordable rate. Send me a message, and we can talk about what that looks like, no obligation. 

Next week, the full burnt-ends delivery begins. 

But to close out today, here’s your burnt- end sample…

Kingship is Your Birthright. 

In ancient cultures, kings were the embodiment of the gods. 

Pharaoh embodied Ra and this gave him the right to rule. Pharaoh received both his authority and wisdom to rule from Ra, and exercised that rule on Ra’s behalf. This is the common understanding of how rulership worked. 

Problem: In the ancient near east, a king could not be everywhere. As the king was more and more successful, he would take ownership of further lands underneath his rule. 

As a symbol of this rule, he would sometimes place a statue, an image of himself, in that far land. This image represented his right to rule, his authority, and brought proxy of his presence into the land. 

The book of Genesis picks up on this image placing practice. God places an image of Himself in the earth.

And what does he expect of this image? To rule on His behalf:

Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. Genesis 1.26–31 ESV

Psalm 8 also speaks of this highly elevated position and purpose for man:

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas. Psalm 8.3–8 ESV

This is where the Biblical worldview is also very different than Pharaoh and Ra:

God scandalously affirms every man a king (and every woman as a queen). God’s man operates from a high identity as royalty. 

A man with God-derived royal self worth is unstoppable, highly confident, and anchored in any storm. 

I find most men, including myself, in our fallen state, want to default to a kind of false humility. We excuse the lackluster results of our life. 

To be effective as God’s men, we need to receive our royal birthright and exercise it.  

Three Ways To Begin Exercising Your Royal Birthright

Assume full responsibility.  Dr. Tony Evans, speaking to men, says "It may not be your fault, but it is your responsibility."  

Jocko Willink calls it Extreme Ownership.  It's Stephen Covey's first habit in the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.   

Whatever you call it, you will be happier, more effective, and grow more if you assume responsibility for everything happening in your life right now and stop looking for others to make it better.

The buck stops with the King

Exercise humility.  If the first thing wasn't enough to humble you, understand this.  Just because you're a king doesn't mean your not accountable.  Kings were accountable to prophets.  They're also accountable to God.  

Remember the scandal is that every human was designed to operate in kingship (or queenship).  You are to exercise your authority with power, love, and self discipline.  

Begin with yourself.   Proverbs says "A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls."  If you're going to rule well, start internally and work outward in this order:

• Heart / Mind
• Body
• Home
• Family

If you can't rule your own heart and mind well, you're not going to rule other things well.  You don't have to be perfect, you just need self-discipline.