Saving money is high on our priority list these days, but we don’t simply want to only save money. We still have the same wants and needs and there are just some things that can’t be replaced with items of a lower quality. Prescription drugs are one of those essentials parts of life.

Walgreens has long been a part of the community effort to provide quality prescription medicines at an affordable price. In order to continue the great level of service, they have introduced the Walgreens Prescription Savings Club.

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• Savings on more than 8,000 brand-name and all generic medications
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Walgreens continues to be interested in serving the needs of the people in their local communities. To find out more about the Prescription Savings Club, consider following Walgreens on Twitter. You can also find more information and promotions by becoming friends with Walgreens on Facebook.

I agree with the comments thus far, but believe we are still skimming at the surface. Specifically I am seeking to discuss what are the most basic, inner qualities that God has instilled in the hearts of man. The first of these, which has not yet been addressed is leadership.

All of the other qualities that make up a man aid him in accomplishing his God-given role as the leader. This is not the base, arrogant, insensitive brute kind of tyrant, but a thoughtful, compassionate leader who lives out his daily life with intent.

This single characteristic alone has filled volumes, but we must narrow the topic to the main idea of this discussion. As we seek to better understand how we as men can write for a male audience, we should find ways to better communicate male leadership in our writing. Not domination, but leadership.

It has been my observation that in many ways, Christian male writers have softened the leadership role of their male leads in order to garner greater market share from a readership predominated by women. This lost dynamic, in my opinion, has contributed to the reduction of male readership. I mean let’s face it, most of us men are always looking for male characters that agree more with what we feel inside.

As Christian writers, we should not be wary of competing with the secular market which is relegating the role of masculine leadership to a downplayed, less important factor. I have a strong conviction that Christian male authors should provide a better biblical stance on manhood and transmit such qualities in our male characters. Whenever we find ourselves depleting the ideals we feel strongly within ourselves, we are adding to the confusion that is being generated by society in general.

So, now we have discussed a little about the qualities of man, let us focus on the biblical qualities of male leadership. That leads to this week’s question:

What are the biblical qualities of a male leader?

Slough of Despondence
A man’s identity is sometimes all he has. When he loses the one thing he understands most, the world around him can descend rapidly into chaos and confusion. Caught between the stalled battle lines of warring armies, the loss of one’s can halt you in  your tracks. Which way do you go and who are your friends?

Broad River Dash
Under the cover of darkness, two fugitives flee into the night, but their pursuers are hot on their heels. One mistake could mean the difference between life and death, but with only freedom to gain, there truly is nothing left to lose.

While both of these stories are indeed very short, they are packed with suspense, action, and emotion. I could probably draw both of these stories out into longer episodes, but I feel that their brevity is appropriate and adds to the very mystery each of them represent.

It has been asked more times than can be counted, “Where are all the real men?” The question is often asked by women who are looking for more of themselves in a man than they are for a real, masculine leader. This truth is likely to offend the sensitivities of a female audience, but this conversation is aimed at the men who have become uncertain of how they should talk, how they should act, and how they should write.

It isn’t than men need to come out of their caves armed with a club and issue guttural demands. No, that is not manhood at all. The image of a controlling, abusive male is the exaggerated opposite of the whimpering coward. True manhood lies somewhere in between, but in order to communicate what makes a real man, such a definition needs to be retrieved from the ashes of our modern culture.

So, what does it mean to be a man, a real man, with real and honest emotions, cares, thoughts and desires? If one cannot realize what a man is, how can we communicate with other men? Where can we look to discover the many aspects of man that have been tamed out of us for so long, without swinging the pendulum too far and thus becoming the overbearing brute?

The tide has been out for so long now, that it may be difficult to find what we seek among contemporary literature. At the same time, if we go too far back, we will uncover the simpleton picture of the archaic and domineering master. I, for one, am convinced that what we seek, as Christian men, can be found in the Bible. There are other sources too, but we must start with a reference with which to gauge the polar opposites. If the stories we wish to tell do not derive from the God-given spirit within us, why should we try to write at all?

Yes, the Bible is where we must begin to rekindle our minds with the traits of honor, leadership, value and wisdom. This is, of course, a discussion and by no means a dictatorial pronouncement from my point of view. No, I am as immersed in our current culture as any of you reading this and I have experienced too many failures of manhood to be counted. It is my utmost desire for this to be a searching and revealing experience and conversation among many male authors.

So, the question for this week is: “What are the characteristics of a man?”

Eight days later, on January 18, 2012, a Catholic priest, named Father Claude Burns posted a video response titled, “Why I Love Religion.” In his video, Father Burns defends religion and appears to refute the arguments laid out in Jeffrey Bethke’s message.

Here are the two messages that appear to contradict one another:

Jeffrey Bethke – Why I Hate Religion

Fr. Claude (Dusty) Burns – Why I Love Religion

The arguments and debates I have already seen being waged online bring to mind a recent documentary that has helped me to change some of my own opinions on this discussion. The video documentary is titled “Lord, Save us From Your Followers,” and here is the trailer:

1. Satan’s goal is both to deceive and to divide
2. Words do have meanings, but different people do define some ambiguous words differently

The point here is to realize overall that this is the essence of spiritual warfare. As long as Satan can use the different ways people define the same words as a weapon to be used against each other, his work is pretty much done. Many of us tend to think that the father of lies (“You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.” John 8:44) is hard at work, every minute of every day trying to find ways to cause division and disobedience. The fact is, while he is always busy, he doesn’t work at his task quite as hard as we may think. We, the human race, are so easily duped into being his pawns, that Satan really isn’t “in the trenches” minute-by-minute. He is a master at propaganda and we are too easily caught up in his plans.

So, how do we stop being the active player in this particular brand and instance of spiritual warfare? We should probably start by identifying the lie that is already fueling up the missiles of hatred. As I boil down the disagreements between the two camps that are lining up on the battlefield, the root of the conflict is the definition of the word “religion.”

There are four entries in the Mirriam-Webster dictionary for the term religion:

1. The state of a religious
1. : the service and worship of God or the supernatural
2. : commitment or devotion to religious faith or observance
2. A personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices
3. Archaic : scrupulous conformity : conscientiousness
4. A cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith

Now, armed with this official definition, I believe we can untangle some of the misconceptions that are dividing the two messages. The first video message, in my understanding, speaks negatively about religion in regards to what is commonly referred to as “works-based-faith.” I believe that his intention was to address the fallacy that occurs in adherence to definition 2 of religion.

When people call themselves Christ followers, but trust only in their own actions to justify their faith, they are relying on this definition of religion for salvation. I truly believe, and agree with Jeffrey Bethke on this point. When any person believes that they are a believer in Christ simply because they go to Church, say particular prayers and minister to the poor and needy, they are justifying their religion on works, not upon faith.

The lyrics of his poem point this out when he talks about “behavior modification.” Jesus did spend much of his earthly ministry condemning and chastising the works-based religion of the Pharisees. This religious group undeniably created a man-made set of rules and to-do lists that had little to nothing to do with faith. The actions of these people became the basis for their beliefs and that by not doing them, somehow their faith would come into question.

This is the point upon which I believe that Father Claud and those who are lining up behind his message are missing the point. It is very clear that Catholicism teaches specific rituals and actions, rules if you will, that mark the spiritual life of the faithful.

I believe that what Father Claud is referring to is the 4th definition of religion. Yes, there are certain expectations that Jesus Christ has for those who call him their savior. But I don’t think that is what the first video is refuting as Father Claud’s video seems to imply. His “Why I Love Religion” addresses the claims against religion causing wars and inquisitions, but you see, just because those blots against historic Christianity originated with the Catholic Church, does not target that institution as the cause of them. Father Claud’s own words in his response indicate that very thing when he says that through religion, “broken men and women to participate in his mission.”

While there is plenty more that can be broken down and discussed about these two videos that appear on the surface as contradictory, the very essence that should erase the battle lines between them center upon this very point. Jesus is calling upon all of us who call him savior to a life of faith AND works.

James 2:14-26 (ESV)

“What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good2 is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, y“Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.”

So you see, both videos have some truth in them, but both of them also fall short of the full truth. While you can have works without faith, that leads to death, a saving faith includes works. In the end it is the personal motivation leading to one’s works that Jesus calls into question. Above all, Jesus Christ wants our hearts. Without it, anything else we do is for ourselves, not for him.

So, let us get back to the works of faith, stop being so easily offended (and thus becoming a tool for the Devil), and welcome one another as equals just as Paul asked of his brother in Christ, Philemon, in regards to Onesimus:

“So if you consider me a partner, welcome him as you would welcome me.”

Jeffrey Bethke – Why I Hate Religion
What if I told you, Jesus came to abolish religion?
What if I told you getting you to vote republican, really wasn’t his mission?
Because republican doesn’t automatically mean Christian,
And just because you call some people blind, doesn’t automatically give you vision.
If religion is so great, why has it started so many wars?
Why does it build huge churches, but fails to feed the poor?
Tells single moms God doesn’t love them if they’ve ever been divorced
Yet God in the Old Testament actually calls the religious people whores
Religion preaches grace, but another thing they practice,
Tend to ridicule Gods people, they did it to John the Baptist,
Cant fix their problems, so they try to mask it,
Not realizing that’s just like sprayin’ perfume on a casket
Because the problem with religion is that it never gets to the core,
It’s just behavior modification, like a long list of chores.
Let’s dress up the outside, make things look nice and neat,
Its funny that’s what they do to mummies, while the corpse rots underneath,
Now I ain’t judging I’m just saying be careful of putting on a fake look,
Because there’s a problem if people only know that you’re a Christian by that little section on your facebook
In every other aspect of life you know that logic’s unworthy
Its like saying you play for the Lakers just because you bought a jersey
But see I played this game too; no one seemed to be on to me,
I was acting like church kid, while addicted to pornography.
I’d go to church on Sunday, but on Saturday getting faded,
Acting as if I was simply created to have sex and get wasted.
Spend my whole life putting on this facade of neatness,
But now that I know Jesus, I boast in my weakness.
If grace is water, then the church should be an ocean,
Cuz its not a museum for good people, it’s a hospital for the broken
I no longer have to hide my failures I don’t have to hide my sin,
Because my salvation doesn’t depend on me, it depends on him.
because when I was Gods enemy and certainly not a fan,
God looked down on me and said, “I want that man!”
Which is so different from religious people, and why Jesus called em fools
Don’t you see hes so much better than just following some rules?
Now let me clarify, I love the church, I love the bible, and I believe in sin
But my question, is if Jesus were here today, would your church let Him in?
Remember He was called a drunkard and a glutton by “religious men”
The Son of God not supported self-righteousness, not now, not then.

Now back to the topic, one thing I think is vital to mention,
How Jesus and religion are on opposite spectrums,
One is the work of God one is a man made invention,
One is the cure and one is the infection.
Because Religion says do, Jesus says done.
Religion says slave, Jesus says son,
Religion puts you in shackles but Jesus sets you free.
Religion makes you blind, but Jesus lets you see.

This is what makes religion and Jesus two different clans,
Religion is man searching for God, but Christianity is God searching for man.
Which is why salvation is freely mine, forgiveness is my own,
Not based on my efforts, but Christ’s obedience alone.
Because he took the crown of thorns, and blood that dripped down his face
He took what we all deserved, that’s why we call it grace.
While being murdered he yelled “father forgive them, they know not what they do”,
Because when he was dangling on that cross, he was thinking of you
He paid for all your sin, and then buried it in the tomb,
Which is why I’m kneeling at the cross now saying come on there’s room
So know I hate religion, in fact I literally resent it,
Because when Jesus cried It is finished, I believe He meant it.

Fr. Claude (Dusty) Burns – Why I Love Religion
Aka Pontifex
1/14/12
What if I told you that Jesus loves religion
And that by his coming as man he brought his religion to fruition
See this had to be addressed, the use of illogical terms and definitions
You clearly have a heart for Jesus but its fueling atheistic opinions
See what makes his religion great is not errors of wars and inquisitions
It’s that broken men and women to participate in his mission
Clearly Jesus says I have not come to abolish
I came to fulfill the law and I came to fulfill the prophets (Matthew 5:17)
And lines about building big churches and tending to the poor
Sounds a bit like Judas when the perfume was being poured (John 12:5)
See His religion is the largest worldwide source of relief
For the poor, the hungry, the sick and repentant thief
Oceans of compassion, opening wide the doors
For single mothers, widows and orphans, married and divorced (James 1:27)
We all detest hypocrisy, and empty show is just the worst
But blaming religion for contradiction
Is like staring at death, and blaming the hearse.
See the teacher will teach when the students are ready to listen
But those that choose to sit in the pews and refuse the good news
Is not the fault of religion.
And If I have the Jersey and I’m playing for the Bulls
There’s going to be some boundaries, regulations and some rules.
You can’t have Christ without his Church; you can’t have the King without his Kingdom
Sins of the Body and internal treason will never ever make me leave him
And that Jesus said it is done, is absolutely true
But he also gave us a mission with many things to DO.
Jesus says if you love me, you will Do what I command. (JN 15:14)
Go and Baptize in the name of the Father, Son & Spirit in Every Land. (MT 28:19)
And on the night he was betrayed he took his men in the Upper Room
Take at eat this is my body take and drink my blood for you.
A New covenant you see, an act connected to the tree,
Do this time and time again in Memory of Me. (Mt 26:26-28)
And at last with crown of thorns beaten beyond comprehension
His eyes were looking for yours and mine; it was divine, no human invention.
So as for religion I love it, I have one because Jesus rose from the dead and won.
I believe When Jesus said IT IS FINISHED, His religion had just begun.

The “niche” is your unique viewpoint on any given subject. Let’s say you want to write about cars. Well, there certainly is a big audience for automobiles, but the problem is that there are already a ton of blogs and websites out there writing about cars. What you need to be a successful blogger is a special “niche” within the general subject of cars. You can narrow down “cars” to “sports cars” and further still to “Italian sport cars.” Of course you can continue down the line to even narrower topics, but hopefully you get the picture. The more unique your content is, the greater the chance you have of sticking out from the crowd.

When you have finally narrowed down your particular niche, you can choose a title for your blog and begin writing. Having a niche does in now way restrict you to only writing in that narrow topic, but the best advice is that the majority of your articles remain centered on that particular area.

We will begin to discus the particulars in coming articles, but having a more focused approach to the information you publish will help you identify how to best market your blog. It doesn’t matter whether you choose to earn money from your blog or not, but you will want to find ways to publicize your writing in order to attract readers. This is the essence of marketing, but that is a whole other realm that we will delve into next time.

The original story was half as long in order to qualify for the FaithWriters weekly challenge. This version is extended in order to give the reader a bit more information, but not too much. I believe the brevity of this story enhances the mystery of the circumstances that surround it.

I hope you continue to enjoy my Civil War short stories and there are eight more in the pipeline waiting to be published. As soon as they are all formatted and available as individual stories, I will then publish the entire collection in one volume.

It isn’t that men do not like to read, we know that. The problem is that too much of what we read doesn’t match our God-given personalities. Thankfully there are a number of male authors who have been given the gift to reach both men and women with their prose, but it seems for the most part that we are writing softer stories these days.

We have been convinced that all of what we write needs to paint a pretty picture and drift along on clouds of soft pillowed passion. What happened to the tough, gritty writing that men identified with? The majority of male authors that write for the secular marketplace are still biting bullets and doing hard things. Unfortunately, it seems that many Christian male writers have been duped  into believing that stories need to be tamed down in order to appease our critics.

I’m not buying it, literally! The circle of Christian male authors that I read is shrinking and that disturbs me. We are  in dire need of men who will take up the challenge of writing stories for men that read like stories for men. Enough of the flowery poetry! It is time to dig deeper and reach down inside ourselves to recall the nerve, grit and resolve that God has placed in our blood-pumping hearts.

Don’t think for one minute that your story cannot include nerve-wracking tension, edge-of-your-seat action, and yes, even blood. The heroes of our stories ought to storm through life, taking direct aim at solving whatever life throws at them. Trust me, it is okay to even include romance, but romance as seen through the eyes of the man, not the woman.

Our generation is starving for male leadership. Heroes that save the day, not through manipulation and coercion, but through hard work and steel resolve. Do we still have it within ourselves, men, to write tales of adventure that encourage the hearts of men? I think we do, and together we can find that masculine soul that so many of us are still longing for.

I hope you will join the discussion as we look for ways to improve our writing in order to end the disenfranchisement of our brothers in Christ! Mark your calendars for each and every Wednesday to come and be a part of Men Writing for Men!

As someone who can never remember a time when I did not enjoy writing, this question stopped me in my mental tracks. I am not usually a person without an answer, even if it takes me some time to fully articulate one, but this was different.

As I read through the various answers given by other writers, I didn’t find myself in complete agreement with any of them. Perhaps the closest answer that agreed with me at that moment was, “I have things to say to enrich others.” Although that was close to my initial reaction, saying it to myself brought up within me, a spirit of arrogance.

It is true that every time I write, I feel a sense of wanting to imbue some higher meaning, to call attention to a nobler sense of purpose. However, as I continued searching my own thoughts I began to ask myself the question, “What is it that you, Patrick, have to give?” The nature of the question did expose many of the failings I have experienced over the years and although each failure is washed in the blood of Christ, as a man I often revisit those things.

I have learned over time to forgive myself for the things that God forgave long ago and will continue to forgive, but the question remained as a ringing in my ears, “What do you have to give?”

The answer to this question, which slowly revealed itself to me over the course of the afternoon, exposed perhaps the greatest reason behind the ebbing motivation I experience in my writing. I have long prayed a single scripture each time I sit down to write, “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.” – Proverbs 16:3 (ESV).

Before becoming a child of God, I would write all manner of stories, some good, some bad, but never really intended to share them with anyone. When I began to develop a desire to write for God, it was His message that I wanted to convey, not my own. Thus, when I begin to feel like I am sending out a message of my own making, I feel less motivated to write. In comparison, when I truly feel that the words my fingers compose come from outside of me, I am increasingly energized.

To take this thought further, which God did with me yesterday, when I have neglected reading His word or acting as His servant, the less I have of His to give. The end result is a dead and lifeless document, which in the end is what I would be without my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

As I concluded my mental and emotion wrestling match that resulted from a simple question, I realized that I write in order to give to others what God has given to me. If I am not sharing in His blessings, the whole act of writing feels like some laborious process that has no need to be shared.

This is not to say that God grants me more than He does to anyone else, but what He shares with me is not meant for me to keep to myself. The Greek word for this, as I discovered in my time of contemplation is, “didomi.” which simply means, “to give.”

This realization has opened a whole new world to me as I realized that I cannot give what I do not have. If my child wants an ice cream and I have neither ice cream nor money with which to purchase it, I cannot give it away. In the same way, if I am not receiving the things God wants to give me, I cannot give them away.

The old saying, “One must give in order to receive,” falls flat in the light of God’s unlimited grace. The truth of the matter is that, “one must receive in order to give.” This is the ultimate picture of relationship and the true nature of how God wants to interact with us. He shares with us not to make us greedy, God gives to us in order that we may share with others.

God, to this day, has not sent me material wealth, although we do much better than most of the world, but what God does share with me is a love for sharing words. Not my words as I am not really all that full of wisdom, but His Word which will never return void.

It is upon that last point that drives my passion for writing historical fiction. Those of us who do write in this particular genre tend to believe that a better understanding of history is very important to our future. There are clear patterns that repeat themselves across time. Perhaps one of the greatest factors in this circle of unending events is the fact that we as a people are not learning from our mistakes (or our successes).

This is where many historical fiction authors attempt to step in and wave a red flag in an attempt to either warn people not to go back there again or to highlight how a similar circumstance was aptly solved in the past. There are other writers who simply enjoy the periods of time within which they write, but even so, the characters in those stories are living out lives and resolving conflicts.

It is within the context of history that such characters come to life and must navigate particular circumstances to some resolution. Isn’t that what contemporary life is still about? Readers of any given genre are not interested in characters that simply exist. They want vibrant and real emotions, reactions, and experiences.

The fun part of a historical setting, for me, is that through the research and writing, I realize that much of what human kind experiences today is really not that much different from the actions of our ancestors. A high school or college history class may not be able to relay such a reality because within that context, the focus is on the places, dates and names. The conflicts themselves are most often glossed over which makes contemplating their actions much more difficult.

Readers are interested in the human story, the life-blood of any good piece of writing. It may seem illogical to think that a story from the past can be as relevant to modern society as a piece of contemporary fiction, but we historical writers beg to differ. The human story, as played out across the centuries, has really not changed all that much. Our characters may not communicate with cell phones or across electrical networks, but in the end, communication is established and problems (hopefully) are resolved.

If you have not ever read a historical fiction novel, I would encourage you to at least give one a try. You may be surprised to find that regardless of the places, dates and times, the characters are alive with hope and promise for a better tomorrow, your tomorrow. I know that as I write, if I can entice my reader to a better understanding of our past, the chances for a better future will increase.