FutureLead Blog Articles

Cheaper than an Affair

It still amazes me ... when it happens. It shouldn't shock me ... but it does. It shocks a lot of us for good reasons. Church leaders (mostly Pastors) have "moral failures" with their Assistant(s) all over the US and around the globe (AND, those are the ones we know about). Sure, we could over-spiritualize their temptations or say that they were under spiritual attack ... but ... I would simply suggest this: Pastors who have affairs are visibly arrogant people. They believe their own press and they think everyone else does too. They are only fooling themselves and catering only ...

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Posted by: Bryan Miles
Monday
September 12th, 2011

Signs that Your Marriage is on the Rocks: Irreconcilable Differences

Divorce is often presented as a foregone conclusion based on differences between husbands and wives that are what the courts call irreconcilable. This is a point of no return where husbands think they should give up on loving their wives since there’s no hope. However, is it possible to overcome our differences, even if they seem irreconcilable? For the followers of a God who has reconciled the worst of sinners to himself, there is more hope than we may expect. In previous posts we’ve looked at a series of warning signs that a marriage is on the rocks: Hard Heart, Excess ...

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Monday
August 29th, 2011

Signs that Your Marriage is on the Rocks: Unresolved Conflicts

Unresolved conflicts can include a roaring argument where neither party feels understood or the steady build up of small offenses over time. Couples unable to resolve their arguments or to address the ways they aggravate one another may think they’re avoiding trouble. In reality they’re just delaying it, and often making it worse. These conflicts build up over months and years like a series of landmines waiting to explode. Bitterness and unforgiveness set in, robbing the relationship of joy and intimacy. If enough conflicts are left unresolved, it may only take the smallest offense to set off an explosion. Eventually, authentic ...

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Monday
August 15th, 2011

Signs that Your Marriage is on the Rocks: An Unforgiving Spirit

Now that we’ve looked at six warning signs that a marriage is on the rocks, this final warning sign offers a last chance to hold a marriage together before it is shattered. In fact, forgiveness can bind a marriage together, even if it’s on the brink of disaster, and offer a chance to correct past mistakes. We need to grant forgiveness, and we need to receive it. According to Dr. James Dobson, “A good marriage is not one where perfection reigns; it is a relationship where a healthy perspective overlooks a multitude of ‘unresolvables.’” It’s no secret that every marriage hits ...

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Monday
August 8th, 2011

Signs that Your Marriage is on the Rocks: Unreasonable Demands

A marriage can end up on the rocks when husbands begin to try to control their wives or try to push them into directions that aren’t healthy. When men become perfectionists, they place such high expectations upon their wives that they can never measure up. Commercials, movies, and magazines depict the “ideal” for female beauty with supermodels, while the women in magazines have even been digitally altered. Men slip into an ideal-mate syndrome that, compares their wives to our culture’s ideal woman, breeds discontent, and creates a rift between them and their wives. These images and expectations have become so ...

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Tuesday
July 19th, 2011

Signs that Your Marriage is on the Rocks: Unmet Expectations

Everyone brings expectations into a marriage. There are good expectations such as mutual respect and trust that, when met, will make a marriage stronger. On the other hand, men can also bring unrealistic and ultimately destructive expectations into a marriage. Perhaps they expect everyday married life to be as thrilling as the pursuit or they don’t expect they’ll have to listen to their wives after a long day of work. When such misplaced expectations are not met, the subsequent disappointment can strain a marriage. Many restless men never come to the place of being content with their wives. The Bible ...

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Tuesday
July 5th, 2011

Signs that Your Marriage is on the Rocks: Excess Baggage

There’s a story I heard once about a married couple standing before an altar preparing to say their vows. Each of them thinks about the fresh start that marriage will bring. An unseen line of suitcases, backpacks and laptops trail behind them, representing all of the past relational and emotional baggage they are bringing into the marriage. Destructive habits, selfishness, low self-esteem, and an inability to communicate are all examples of the excess baggage we may bring into a marriage. Excess baggage causes problems because we start new relationships with emotional and relational weaknesses that prevent us from serving our wives. ...

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Tuesday
June 21st, 2011

Signs that Your Marriage is on the Rocks: A Hard Heart

This begins a series of blogs from my new book Solid Marriage: How to get one. Look for a new post every other week. Wives: Don’t post on the refrigerator. Men: Read it before your wife does!

A Hard Heart

Few men will be surprised by a Dear John letter or a trip to the courthouse downtown for a divorce. Marriages rarely come to a sudden, unpredictable end.

Unhealthy habits—often started during the dating relationship—continue and multiply until their weight is too great for one or both of the marriage partners. By the time the relationship suffers so much neglect and destruction, walking away may seem much easier than rebuilding and reconciling.

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Tuesday
June 7th, 2011

It’s About Global Stupid

Recently I had a talk show host ask me about men, morality, justice issues,and economics. It actually wasn’t that daunting. The connections went like this. Thinking & Worldview · There is no such thing as economic reform or renewal in the third world or in any country without an equally powerful moral shift in worldview where those energies and resources are deposited… think the UN helping war torn nations and dumping money, people, energy into countries dominated by a broken male culture and infrustructure called to manage it. United States is ...

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Posted by: Kenny Luck
Thursday
March 10th, 2011

Jeremiah was a Prophet – to Today’s Church

Jeremiah certainly was politically incorrect, long before that term ever entered our vocabulary. Although he may seem out of step with modern Christianity, I would argue that his timeless message has never been more relevant.

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Saturday
January 15th, 2011

Committed and Engaged In The Battle For Men

Mobilizing, motivating, equipping men to live and lead On Mission for Christ. A group of men meet weekly in a Barn just south of our neighborhood. There are usually forty to fifty such kingdom warriors who, in pursuit of God, are actively connected to advance the kingdom. Recently I was asked to share my story with them covering my last few years. As you may know, I went through a breakdown in my health, leading into a depressed state. Even though it wasn’t a complete breakdown, it still has taken me many months to fully recover and get back on ...

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Tuesday
January 4th, 2011

Purple Cow

A book that I have enjoyed reading and also making application is the book Purple Cow by Seth Godin. Here’s his premise: When you’re on a long country drive you can’t help but notice the cows along the way. However, after awhile you stop noticing them because they all look the same. Now suppose that after becoming bored with cows, there happens to be a purple cow out in the field. It’s so unlike the others that you can’t help but stop, take pictures and call some friends about this very unique cow. In this book ...

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Tuesday
November 23rd, 2010

Orthodoxy Isn’t Enough

Most likely the title of this article has gotten your attention or it’s a word you’re unfamiliar with and are willing to read a few more words to see where I’m going with this. Well, I want to give you two words that are incredibly important and it seems that many of us have misused or misinterpreted them: Word #1 – Orthodoxy To put it simply, it means “right belief.” There has been and will always be a struggle to ascertain just what is “orthodox” belief when it comes to the scriptures, and it is a journey that is important ...

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Tuesday
November 23rd, 2010

Good to Great

In his book Good to Great, Jim Collins said this: “Good is the enemy of great. And that is one of the key reasons why we have so little that becomes great.” Few men attain great lives of purpose and passion. It’s just too easy to settle for a good life. It’s tempting to slip into acting like good men—running an efficient office here, being ready to offer a helping hand there. If you’re really good, you’ll even a men’s meeting or two, remember birthdays and anniversaries. If you play your cards right, you’ll often here those oh-so-addictive words, “He’s ...

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Posted by: Glenn Wagner
Tuesday
November 23rd, 2010