Men Being Men

I have wonderful guys in my life. And me writing this is not meant to say the guys in my life prior to coming to Ellerslie are not men. It's just taken me by beautiful surprise to see a group of more than 20 guys be men all at once and unashamedly. It's also a joy to see and know their manhood flows from a relationship with the One who defines what true masculinity is.

I began to notice it even before I got on campus. At the airport, waiting for the shuttle, I met a bunch of my classmates, including a few of the guys. When the shuttle came, the guys immediately came to us girls and started to take our luggage to load on the shuttle - leaving their own sitting there in the airport for last. At first, I tried to protest, saying I could get it (not because I was offended he wanted to help me but because I didn't want him to have to get my stuff). I quickly relented though, seeing his reaction to my protest which was a sense of joy to be able to help me out.

It's been a slightly difficult adjustment letting the guys be chivalrous. Especially with society whispering that their service is them saying women are weak in any way. I'm beginning to see we women are weak. But it's when we don't let them be men rather than when we do.

It only continued from there. Suddenly, I'm barely opening doors for myself. I rarely walk on grass because they clear the sidewalk first to give us more room. The cover sprinklers with their feet so we can walk across without getting wet. At the banquet, they escorted us in and even pulled out our chairs for us. They let us girls go first in the food lines before they go, at every meal. They get us water, they clear our dishes, and they do it all from love that flows through them from Jesus Christ.

I was walking with some girls to dinner the other night, and I got there first so i held the door open for them. I didn't realize there was a guy walking behind us, but I suddenly saw him sprinting to the door so he could hold it and I could walk in with the other ladies. The other day, each of us girls got a very sweet and encouraging note in our mailboxes from our brothers.

One of the most powerful and touching experiences was at the banquet. After dinner, Ben got up and spoke about how the enemy was already trying to attack us girls - with colds, sinus problems, headaches, etc. He said it was the guys' pleasure to stand in the gap for us. Their joy is being the first sufferers. Saying to the enemy that's he'll have to get through them to get to us. And they all made a circle around us and prayed for us girls...I don't reckon there were too many dry eyes in the chapel after that.

It has been difficult, and I'm not the only girl who has expressed the longing to do something more for them to show gratitude than just saying, "Thank you". But the most common response you'll hear to the question of how we can serve them is to let them serve us. To let them be the men God is calling them to be. And oh I'm so grateful to experience this. It's circular - letting them be men let's us be the women God is calling us to be. I've seen few more beautiful things.