Young Man, Stand

To Boys: You Are a Young Man

There will be a thousand voices trying to tell you who you are.

Some will tell you to stay small.

Some will tell you to stay soft.

Some will tell you that growing up is optional.

They are wrong.

You are not a future man.

You are not a “man someday.”

You are a young man.

Right now.

That means your choices matter.

Your words matter.

The way you carry yourself matters.

A young man learns to tell the truth — even when it costs him.

A young man protects what is smaller than him.

A young man controls his strength instead of being controlled by it.

A young man keeps his word.

You don’t need a beard to have backbone.

You don’t need a paycheck to have responsibility.

You don’t need permission to act with honor.

Strength is not loud.

Courage is not reckless.

Confidence is not cruelty.

A young man stands steady.

There will be days you feel unsure.

Days you feel outmatched.

Days you want to quit.

Stand anyway.

You are being formed right now — by what you watch, what you listen to, who you follow, and what you practice.

Every habit is shaping you.

Every compromise is training you.

Every act of discipline is strengthening you.

Do not drift.

Drifting is easy.

Drifting is common.

Drifting is what boys do when no one calls them up.

But you have been called up.

There is strength in you.

There is leadership in you.

There is responsibility in you.

Act like it.

Look people in the eye.

Speak clearly.

Finish what you start.

Help without being asked.

Train your body.

Guard your mind.

You are not toxic.

You are not a problem to manage.

You are not something to apologize for.

You are a young man.

And the world does not need you smaller.

It needs you steady.

It needs you disciplined.

It needs you courageous.

It needs you to become who you were made to be.

A son of the Most High King of Glory.