Man Up

When I was in my early teens and playing city league baseball, I had a friend who was a pitcher.  During one particular game a struck ball came back towards him, hitting him in the shoulder.  He went down like a sack of potatoes.  The game stopped and he was helped back to the dugout where I was sitting.  My friend was hurting bad and he was crying.  As he was holding an ice bag on his shoulder his dad came into the dugout.  His dad stood over him and told him to stop crying and to Man Up.  His dad never comforted him, nor sat down beside him.  His only words were Man Up.

I tell you this story because of a response I had to my last post.  The person who responded used the words Man Up.  Now I am not sure if the person truly didn't understand my post or his response was like that of my friend's dad.  Anytime you are hurting, you need to Man Up.  Sounds simple enough, but does manning up fit ever type of hurt?

Before I answer that last question, let me first give you my definition of manning up.  A man who takes responsibility for a child he conceived in a one night stand with a woman, is manning up.  A man who works more than two jobs to take care of his family, is manning up.  A father who takes his crying child into his arms and hugs them, is manning up.  You see, what my friend's father did was not being a man.  What he thought he was doing was trying to make his son a man, and not a sissy, by telling him not to cry and to Man Up.

So to answer my question, the answer is no.  You can't tell an alcoholic to Man Up.  You surely can't tell a person trying to beat a drug addiction to Man Up.  Most definitely you wouldn't tell someone who is dealing with depression to Man Up.  What about a person who has lost a loved-one to cancer?  "Hey your loved-one is dead, you can't bring them back. So Man Up!"  Don't get me started about some father telling his thirteen year old son to Man Up.  Can you imagine Jesus telling any of the hurt people He came into contact with to Man Up.  I seriously don't think Jesus would be as popular as He is today if he acted that way.

We come into contact with people everyday with different levels of hurt.  How we approach them, and how we act towards them can make all the difference.  People don't expect answers from you; they want arms to hold them, a shoulder to lean on and an ear that listens.  They surely don't need someone telling them to Man Up.

I have been lucky to have people around me who recognize when I am hurting and give me comfort.  They may do it by providing me a song, giving me a hug or just a few encouraging words.  I know it is God working through them, because it is just what He would do.

"You who have made me see many troubles and calamities will revive me again; from the depths of the earth you will bring me up again. You will increase my greatness and comfort me again." Psalms 71:20-21