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You are not alone. As men, we face very similar challenges and struggles. Odds are, whatever you are facing, another brother in your NCS chapter has faced (or is facing) something similar--honest. Sharing a common struggle can provide the foundation for a deep and lasting friendship. Hearing how another man overcame a challenge through God’s grace can provide hope. NCS is about creating a safe environment where men can be transparent and authentic with each other, because we can help each other heal and grow.
Whatever you may be facing, there are dozens of books, hundreds of talks and numerous seminars offering assistance. The problem is—where do you start??
“NCS Recommends” is meant to be a starting point. It is an attempt by the NCS leadership to point you in the direction of a manageable group of resources that have been helpful in our lives or the lives of our friends for different challenges.
Are we saying this is the best out there? No. Are we saying this is all you need to read or hear? No. These are the resources we would give a friend coming to us with a particular struggle common to men. It is a starting point, but hopefully it is manageable enough list to let you get started. As you go through your journey, please let us know if there are other resources you found particularly helpful.
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Audio & Video
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Cultural Elites: The Next Unreached People Group
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Speaker Presentation of Eric Metaxes on 9-11-09 at NCS New Canaan. Eric talks about how Christians can impact their culture. His central message is "Lead with the deed", meaning that the best way for us to spread the message of Christ is to begin by spreading the love of Christ through our actions (and not just by our words). This talk was based on an essay by Eric that is available under Written Word"
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Finding God's Love in The Shack
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Paul Young, author of the best-selling book "The Shack", explains how the book represents his personal story of coming to understand God's character and incredible love.
With tremendous humility, transparency and wisdom, Young shares a powerful message about shame, our attempts to hide and God's relentless desire to heal our soul and rebuild our heart from the inside out. Young concludes by explaining the importance of a community of brotherhood like NCS to the healing process.
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Confessions of a Disconnected Male
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Have you seen the movie "Up in the Air"? The character played by George Clooney was disconnected from other people. Unfortunately, this does not just happen in the movies--many men are disconnected (perhaps not as severely as Clooney) and it impacts their families, friendships and careers. John Seel shares for the very first time his story of disconnectedness and the long and painful road back to connectedness.
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Being Honest About Ourselves
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Sharing his own struggle with honesty, Skip Ryan explores the importance of "speaking truth" and explains why we need to get "real" and be honest about who we are as men before we can be an effective faithful presence to others.
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A Vision for Work
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Most men live a compartmentalized life, struggling to understand how to integrate their faith with their work and never experiencing the satisfaction with work that God intended. Andy Mills explores how to be fulfilled through your work by finding and following what God called you to do so that He can use you as his co-creator on earth.
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Being an "All In" Person
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Dr. Scott Harrison, the founder of CURE International, explains (through sharing his own extraordinary life) the difference between being a "dabbler" and being "all in" in life.
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Taking the Bible to the Trading Floor
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Greg Zehner shares some of the challenges he faced living his faith while a Goldman Sachs partner running the emerging markets trading desk. Zehner is very open about the pressures to compromise integrity and family. He is also very transparent about making the decisions to retire from Goldman, attend Yale Divinity School and become a pastor.
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Getting To Know the Real Jesus
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Mark Earley shows us how the real Jesus is different from what most people think and even different from what the church often emphasizes and teaches. He shares how getting to know Jesus better will lead us to love more and love differently.
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Message of Hope at Christmas
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What is the key to living the abundant life Jesus promised us, no matter our circumstances?
Tom McGehee lost his teenage son in a motorcycle accident. In this message he shares about looking for hope in all the wrong places and how he learned that surrender is the key to a life of eternal hope.
Tom teaches that we fill our lives with things of the urgent. Yet, it is the things of the eternal that bring us life. Its all about your perspective and your choice to see the world not through your lens, but with God’s view.
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Designed for Life
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John Bishop is passionate about the idea that men were designed by God to work, that work is a partnership with God, and that work is a form of worship. We are driven by the desire to be accepted and the fear of being rejected, and significance is hearing "well done". John also talks about the spiritual warfare against men that tries to trap them in a career that is not their design.
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The Awesome Responsibility of Leadership
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In a time when many of America's problems are blamed on irresponsible leadership in business and the public sector, Bill Pollard, former Chairman and CEO of ServiceMaster, explains what it means to be a responsible leader. Pollard shares experiences and lessons learned from his remarkable business career. Pollard and ServiceMaster understood "faith in the workplace" long before it became a popular topic of discussion.
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The Great Commission
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When many of us think of the Great Commission, we envision talking to people about Jesus (or wearing a placard on a street corner). Jay Lippy reminds us that the Great Commission can be carried out by discovering what God designed us for and then doing it with excellence. It is about living our faith.
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The Importance of Fathers
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There is no denying that our relationship with our fathers has a profound impact on our lives. As President of the National Fatherhood Initiative, Roland Warren is devoting his life to fathers and fatherhood. In this talk, he shares his own experiences and explores why a father matters so much in the life of a child.
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Treat Me Like A Customer
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Louis Upkins reveals how the skills we have perfected in business can be applied effectively to improve our relationships with spouses, children and friends.
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The Importance of Relationships and Commitment in Christian Faith
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John Guest's talk began with a detour. After Jim Lane shared some thoughts on the importance of Energy Groups following the suicide of an NCS brother, John shared how his own father's suicide had impacted his life. John urged all present to get involved in Energy Groups--to be in close relationship with other men. With the time remaining, John then came back to his original topic. The focus of his message was on the importance of making a real faith commitment--getting off the fence. When he finished, you could hear a pin drop.
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Why Are We Here?
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With great energy and classic NCS humor, Jason Pankau helps us understand the Great Commission by going deeper into what it means to be a disciple. Sharing his own struggles and the role mentors have played in his life, Pankau explains what it means to be in a "covenant" friendship and why we need mentors and mentees in order to grow in our faith. Jason's insights can help every NCS brudder gain a better understanding of the transparent and authentic friendships that are at the core of NCS and NCS Energy Groups.
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Written Word
| Cultural Elites: The Next Unreached People Group |
Eric Metaxas |
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There is no better description of this brilliant piece than Eric's first paragraph (below).
"Does God want us to change the world? And if so, how? If you’re in a hurry, let me cut to the chase: a) yes – and b) by doing what the Clapham Circle did: proving their faith through works, mostly among the poor and powerless, and working among the rich and powerful. There’s a little more to it, but if you must run, there’s the
nuance-free answer which, like a sack lunch, you may take with you."
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| Love and Respect |
Emerson Eggerichs |
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Love & Respect by Emerson Eggerichs. Eggerichs focuses on a simple yet profound Biblical concept--women need unconditional love and men need unconditional respect. Because we look at things differently, we miscommunicate. This book helps break down the communication barrier and is a must-read for every couple.
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| Sacred Marriage |
Gary Thomas |
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Sacred Marriage, Gary Thomas. The subtitle says it all--"What if God designed marriage to make us holy more than to make us happy". This book shows you how your marriage relationship is the training ground and mirror for your relationship with God.
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| Discovering the Mind of a Woman |
Ken Nair |
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Discovering the Mind of a Woman by Ken Nair. Nair's basic thesis is that God gave a man a wife to be a spiritual barometer of his Christlikeness--how are you doing? This is like an in-depth study on how a man can love a woman unconditionally (read Love & Respect then read this)
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| Addiction and Grace |
Gerald May |
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Addiction and Grace, Gerald May. There are many, many addictions. You may initially think things like alcohol, drugs or pornography, but you also need to think things like affirmation, power, financial security--you probably have at least one. Addictions are idols, and without God's grace, an addiction just transfers from one thing to another.
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| To Change the World |
James Davison Hunter |
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At the 2010 NCS Retreat, keynote speaker James Davison Hunter shared an overview of his newly-release book, To Change the World. Through three essays, Hunter explains how Christians need a different paradigm of engagement with the world, a "faithful presence." Hunter suggests that it is only through Christians practicing a faithful presence individually and insitutionally in work and all spheres of social life that they can truly change the world.
Since the Retreat, Hunter's book has received excellent reviews and has become the talk of many theological blogs.
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Websites
Love and Respect - Dr. Emerson Eggerichs
Seminars
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Forum |
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Join the NCS forums - your home to conversing with other brudders. VIEW FORUM
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