The Week In Review
February 28, 2026
One Good Thing This Week
Read this in C.S. Lewis’ Prince Caspian this week… A tremendous picture of sanctification:
"Aslan," said Lucy, "you’re bigger."
"That is because you are older, little one," answered he.
"Not because you are?" said Lucy.
"I am not. But every year you grow, you will find me bigger…" [Aslan]
I love this gem. Sanctification is not Jesus becoming more glorious. It is us becoming more awake. When we are newly converted, Christ is precious, but small in our perception. We love Him sincerely, but our categories are thin. Our affections are immature. Our theology is underdeveloped. Our obedience is inconsistent. But as we age in grace, His holiness becomes more terrifying and more beautiful. His patience becomes more astonishing. His sovereignty becomes more stabilizing. His cross becomes more central. He hasn’t grown. We have.
As I met with my discipleship group this week, I was reminded that too many men assume growth means fewer struggles and fewer doubts. But biblical growth often looks like greater awareness of sin, deeper dependence, and a bigger vision of Christ
The immature man thinks he is strong. The mature man knows Who is strong. And every year he grows, Christ gets bigger. Not because Christ changed. But because his eyes did.
The men I am leading are seeing the bigger picture. It was a good week.
Something Beautiful This Week
I was at a men’s conference this weekend where something simple, almost ordinary, turned holy. At one point in the gathering, every man received a handwritten note. Not from the speaker. Not from the church. Not from the ministry team. But from his wife. Or his daughter. Or his mother.
You could feel the air change.
These weren’t generic "You’re awesome" notes. They were specific. Personal. Tender. Some thanked husbands for quiet faithfulness. Some told dads, "I’m proud of you." Some simply said, "I see you."
Grown men, strong men, sat there holding paper like it weighed 100 pounds. You could see shoulders drop. Eyes well up. Defenses soften. It was incredible.
We often talk about calling men up. Challenging them. Sharpening them. And we should. Iron sharpens iron. But sometimes what a man needs most isn’t a challenge. It’s affirmation. A simple recognition: "I see your effort." "I know you’re trying." "I’m grateful for you."
Many men live carrying silent questions: Am I doing enough? Does this matter? Does anyone notice? That night, a note answered those questions in a way no sermon could.
It reminded me: Correction shapes a man, but encouragement strengthens him. And when a man feels seen by the people he loves most, something steadies inside of him.
It was one of the most powerful moments I’ve witnessed at a men’s gathering. Sometimes revival doesn’t look like loud worship or big altar calls. Sometimes it looks like ink on paper… and a daughter telling her dad, "I’m proud of you."
Something Worth Imitating
I get asked all the time, "How do we start/sustain a successful men’s ministry?" Outside of defining success [we’ll do that another time], here are some pro-tips:
Build a Core, Not a Crowd
Events don’t build movements. Cores do. Before promotion, before graphics, before sign-ups, identify 8–15 men who: Show up early. Stay late. Bring others. And are hungry.
Pour into them first. Pray together. Cast vision. Clarify roles. Ask each man to personally invite 3–5 others. Movements spread relationally, not digitally.
Promote Through Stories, Not Announcements
Announcements inform. Stories ignite. Instead of: 'Men’s Event — May 12 — Sign up online,' try a 60-second testimony video from a man whose life changed. Record a wife sharing how her husband’s growth affected their home. Challenge the pastor to challenge the church—from the pulpit, talk about why this matters to your church.
Short. Personal. Repeated often. Give men vision and hope, not just a date.
Create On-Ramps, Not One-Night Spikes
The biggest mistake churches make: They host an event… then nothing follows. Every event needs a next step, a clear pathway, a start date. Momentum leaks fast; capture it quickly.
Senior Leadership Must be Visible
The strongest men’s ministries I’ve seen are supported from the stage, reinforced in elder meetings, and celebrated publicly. When your senior pastor talks about it, attends, and follows up afterwards, everything changes.
Having present leadership [e.g., senior pastor, elders] is a MUST. It signals: This isn’t optional. This is matters
My 3 Favorite Quotes of the Week
"Not everyone will like you. That isn’t a problem. It’s proof you finally stopped performing and started obeying." — Chris McKinney
"To be happy at home is the end of all human endeavor. The sun looks down on nothing half so good as a household laughing together over a meal, or two friends talking over a pint of beer, or a person alone reading a book that interests them; and all economics, politics, laws, armies, and institutions, are only valuable in so far as they prolong and multiply such scenes." — C.S. Lewis [The Weight of Glory]
Think about this… "In one hundred years we have gone from teaching Latin and Greek in high school to teaching Remedial English in college." — Joseph Sobran
Something I Found Interesting This Week
New reports out of the Institute for Fmaily Studies… Insightful research regarding dating:
Young adulthood has become a paradox: high romantic aspiration, low relational action. A 2025 survey of 5,275 unmarried adults [22–35] found that only 30% are currently dating and just 31% date at least monthly. Nearly three-quarters of women and two-thirds of men dated rarely or not at all in the past year, despite 51% wanting a relationship.
The decline isn’t about rejecting marriage. Sixty-four percent see marriage as an important life goal, and 46% wish they were married now. Among high school seniors, about half still expect lifelong marriage—down from the late 1970s [60%], but the desire for permanence remains even as confidence fades.
Anxiety and skill gaps play a major role. Only 1 in 3 men and 1 in 5 women feel confident initiating with someone they’re attracted to. Just 37% trust their judgment in choosing a partner. Financial strain [52%], low confidence, and lingering wounds from past breakups further stall momentum.
Gender dynamics compound the issue: women are advancing educationally and economically but struggle to find stable partners; many men, facing status uncertainty, withdraw. Dating apps intensify the imbalance, funneling attention toward a small percentage of men.
This isn’t a generation of men who outright reject commitment; it’s one navigating economic pressure, fragile self-trust, and a culture that prizes endless options over intentional formation [e.g., dating apps].
My advice? Young man, ask her out. Your odds are better than you think.
My Favorite Pic This Week
Teeth missing. Heart full. This is what it looks like to give everything for something bigger than yourself. 'Merica
Book(s) I Read This Week
Every now and then a book doesn’t just inform you… it exposes you. That was my experience reading Aware: The Power of Seeing Yourself Clearly by Les Csorba.
Most of us think we know ourselves. We know our strengths. We know our opinions. We know our convictions. But do we really see ourselves? Csorba’s central argument is simple but unsettling: Many of the tensions in our marriages, our leadership, and our spiritual lives don’t stem from a lack of effort—they stem from a lack of awareness.
Csorba presses on the invisible scripts running beneath our behavior—the fears, pride, insecurities, and unexamined assumptions that shape how we show up in the world. He’s not offering life hacks. He’s inviting honesty. And that’s harder. He challenges the reader to:
Notice emotional triggers instead of justifying them
Observe defensive patterns instead of baptizing them
Separate identity from performance
Slow down long enough to actually see what’s happening inside
In a culture addicted to speed and noise, this feels almost rebellious.
If you lead anything—a family, a business, a church, a team—your blind spots don’t stay private. They leak. Unawareness in a man becomes instability in a home. Unawareness in a leader becomes confusion in a culture. Self-awareness is not navel-gazing. It’s stewardship.
The humble man is not the man who thinks less of himself. He’s the man who sees himself clearly—strengths, weaknesses, wounds, motives—and brings all of it under the authority of Christ. That’s maturity.
I’d give Aware a strong 4.5 out of 5. Not because it is flashy. But because it is honest.
Song(s) I Listened To This Week
Love this song, had it on repeat all week. Also, HERE is a great backstory on the author/hymn…
Worth mentioning… I am becoming a big fan of Zach Top. There is hope for country music. His rendition of Willie’s classic is incredible:
What God Taught Me This Week
"Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when there is the log in your own eye?" — Matthew 7:3–4
The Lord used Thad Cardine [again] to wreck me this week: "Criticism borrows the language of truth and wears it like a disguise…"
My home is dominated by phrases like, "Hurry up…" "That was irresponsible." "Lose the attitude." "Don’t be soft." "You never listen…" And though, in the moment, those phrases may be true, rarely are they helpful. Thad reminded me that truth can be used in two ways: like a lamp to help someone see or like a club to make someone pay.
Too often, I am making my wife and my kids pay in the name of 'truth.'
All this stems from a critical spirit. And a critical spirit is subtle. It convinces us that we are being principled when we are actually being impatient. It whispers, "You’re just calling it like it is." But often what we’re calling 'truth' is just baptized frustration.
A critical spirit usually flows from one of three roots:
Control — "If everyone would just do it my way, we’d be fine."
Fear — "If this continues, everything will fall apart."
Pride — "Why can’t they operate at my level?"
Criticism feels strong in the moment, but it rarely builds strength in others. Paul writes, "Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up…" [Eph 4:29]. Notice the standard isn’t merely true speech. It’s edifying speech.
Something can be true and still tear down. A home dominated by correction becomes a home shaped by caution. Everyone starts walking on eggshells. The temperature drops. Joy retreats. People comply, but they don’t flourish. And here’s the part that wrecked me this week: Jesus is the most truthful person who ever lived. And yet sinners ran toward Him, not away from Him. He told the truth, but it felt like hope.
That’s the difference between a shepherd and a prosecutor. The prosecutor proves you’re wrong. The shepherd restores your soul. I want my home to feel less like a courtroom and more like a green pasture on a spring day.
Strong men are not less truthful. They are more careful with truth. And homes led by men who use truth like a lamp become places where people grow instead of shrink.
Looking to connect in person? Here are some places I’ll be in the next few weeks:
COMO Mens Conference, Columbia, MO, March 7 [special appearance March 6 on the campus of Mizzou]
Brothers, my pledge to you…
"You will never suffer at my hands. I will never say nor do anything knowingly to hurt you. If you're down and I can lift you up, I'll do that. I will always, in every circumstance, seek to help and support you. If you need something and I have it, I'll give it to you. No matter what I find out about you, no matter what happens in the future, either good or bad, my commitment to you will never change."
For the King,
—Harp
I enjoy all of your “Week in Review” posts, but this one spoke to me and poked me in the heart multiple times throughout the newsletter. It convicted and inspired me. Thanks!
Through cloud and sunshine Abide in me !!!💪❤️🙏🏻