Last week I got a chance to catch up with an old friend. It was good to talk to another man and not have to worry about if either of us is being too soft or too vulnerable. As I think about it, if our wives could have heard us talking they probably would have been horrified. Not because we were being disrespectful to them. It's just that women are not use to or ready for that kind of transparency and honesty from a man.

It is so interesting how many men I encounter in my office who have no idea how to express their emotions. I used to be one of those men myself. I had to put in the work to change what I had learned from childhood. Few women truly understand what it feels like to be a man. To live in a world where you have been taught you cannot be human, which means your core emotional needs will go unmet. To have known since the age of 5 that it was not ok to cry, be afraid, run away, or back down from any challenge, especially if that challenge comes from another male. Women have no idea.

Today I watched a disturbing video of a young who was clearly having a mental crisis. As he was preparing to end his life, he repeatedly said that, 'No one cares about how men feel. They expect you to just suck it up and keep going. But I am mentally broken.' Regardless of how he ended up in that situation, the saddest part is that this story is repeated over and over again in our would, daily. Perhaps not to the level of carrying out a suicide on live video, but almost as damaging just the same.

I am only one man. But I am going to do everything I can to fight for the emotional and mental healing of men in my generation. By 'my generation' I mean this current generation I am living in. That means that if you are a man reading this, I am fighting for you! I love doing couples therapy. But lately it has felt like something was not clicking. I knew that God had called me to this work, but for some reason it felt like He had changed His mind. As I began to pray and ask God for clarity about my assignment, I eventually discovered that the calling did not change, however, it did shift focus. 

Because of what I believe to be a God ordained shift, I am changing the focus of my practice to "Helping Men Do Love and Life Better." If you are a man, you will discover your true identity. If you are married, you will be able to understand your wife and communicate your thoughts and emotions clearly to her, without anger. Come with me on this journey and we can discover a whole new world. Look out for my new podcast titled, "HeMotional Damage: Helping Men Heal & Love For Real."

I am excited!! (Some of you who were with me for Manhood Mondays told me I should do this. I wonder if that was God speaking back then? Hmm...)