In this era of political correctness, there aren't many willing to tackle topics that are gender specific. However, Pastor Craig Groeschel is not afraid to challenge trends or risk the ire of the PC police. He actually believes what he has written about and practices those principles in his latest book.

His focus in FIGHT is on the growing number of men who are not willing to fight for anything or about anything. These are men who have become so passive that they are being relegated to minor roles in society, much to the detriment of family units and society in general. Whether or not one agrees with the concept that men and women have unique attributes that enable them to play specific roles, it would be difficult to deny that the lines have become blurred in recent years.

"In his easy, conversational style, Groeschel presents his theme in short two- and three-page chapters that illustrate his points.... FIGHT would certainly make an interesting small group study and encourage men to get in touch with their inner warrior."

Groeschel believes the Biblical principles that picture man as a warrior rather than a wimp, who is more than willing to fight for his wife, children, faith and country. The idea has become almost unthinkable in some circles, a throwback to the bad old days when a man of strength was respected and admired. This is not to say that Groeschel is advocating some kind of return to a caveman-as-role-model era. He actually redefines the type of strength that men need and that families and societies are painfully missing.

Rather than advocating some kind of patriarchal, authoritarian male behavior, Groeschel is encouraging men to find the warrior within them by seeking strength from God to be all that he was created to be. What does it really mean to be strong? What battles are worth fighting? How does a man recognize a righteous battle?

In his easy, conversational style, Groeschel presents his theme in short two- and three-page chapters that illustrate his points. “Pick Your Battles” begins, “If all this talk about fighting and violence and being a warrior bothers you, let me just say this: the virtue of strength is determined by how it's used. If it's used to love and protect, it's good...a warrior is only as worthy as his cause.”

At a time when men, and people in general, seem to be shirking responsibility, it is very interesting to read a different perspective than the one we get from much of the news and entertainment media. Those sources are quick to promote the idea that the government is responsible for everyone, and all we have to do is let it take care of us. A simple study into the dynamics of broken homes and families in crisis will reveal that, in a majority of cases, there is no strong leadership. Absentee fathers have grown to epidemic proportions. The result is more of the same in the next generation as the patterns are repeated.

FIGHT would certainly make an interesting small group study and encourage men to get in touch with their inner warrior.