2026 Week 15 GraceMen Weekly Update

This Week:
1. Prayer
2. Meditation
3. Quote
4. Events
5. Book Recommendation

Brothers,

He is risen!

As we wake up on this Easter Sunday, we are not just remembering an old story, we are living in a present reality: Jesus Christ is alive, and that changes everything. The empty tomb means your sin has been paid for, death has been defeated, and your future is secure in Him.

“But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep” 1 Corinthians 15:20.

Because He walked out of the grave, you never walk through your week alone.

As we continue our “Renew Your Mind” focus this year, Easter reminds us that renewal is not self-improvement, it is resurrection power at work in real men with real struggles. The same Christ who loved the church and gave Himself up for her now renews us from the inside out, including how we think about our marriages, our homes, and our leadership Ephesians 5:25. Wherever this week finds you strong or weak, encouraged or worn out, bring your mind back to this: the risen Jesus is for you, He is with you, and His grace is enough for whatever lies ahead.

This week’s prayer points us to love our wives “as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her,” and the meditation reminds us that Christ’s leadership is sacrificial, not demanding Ephesians 5:25. As you read, pray, and reflect, ask the Lord to reshape your thoughts about what it means to lead at home, not by clinging to your rights, but by laying down your life in light of the cross and the empty tomb.

What kind of situations in your home right now make sacrificial, Christlike leadership feel most costly to you?

Prayer:

Lord, help me to love my wife as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her. (Ephesians 5:25)

Ephesians 5:25  - Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her

Meditation: 

Christ’s leadership was sacrificial. Are you leading your home by demanding rights or by laying down your life?

Quote:

R. C. Sproul 
- “The model for the husband’s authority is not the tyranny of a despot but the sacrifice of a Savior. Ephesians 5:25 calls husbands to love their wives as Christ loved the church, which means that headship is expressed in bleeding, serving, and dying, not in barking orders.” 

Events:

Thursday - April 9 2026

• Morning Bible Study - 6am thru 7:15am 
• At the Church in the Prayer Room
• Beginning our new series "Everyday Wisdom: Walking with Christ & One Another through the Book of Proverbs"
• This weeks topic - look for the mid-week reminder text.

Saturday - April 11, 2026

Morning Bible Study - 7am

• This week we are continue the study of Leviticus. We're covering Chapters 4-5.
• Study Guide "Week 3". 

Book Recommendation:

No Mere Mortals: Marriage for People Who Will Live Forever – Toby Sumpter

For men, No Mere Mortals: Marriage for People Who Will Live Forever is worth reading because it refuses to flatter you and instead treats you as a man whose choices echo into eternity. Sumpter insists that your wife and children are “no mere mortals,” and that your leadership in the home is one of God’s primary tools for their eternal good or harm. That perspective alone cuts against the trivial, joking way our culture often talks about husbands and fathers, and it forces you to ask harder questions about what kind of legacy your household will actually leave.

The book is especially valuable because it will not let you hide behind passivity. In chapters like “Don’t Shipwreck the Headship” and “Going into the Fire First,” Sumpter argues that a husband is called to assume responsibility, speak with godly authority, and be the first one into difficulty—whether that means confessing sin, making a hard decision, or absorbing pressure so his wife and children don’t have to. If you tend to coast, defer, or let your wife carry the emotional and spiritual weight of the home, these chapters will sting in the best way.

At the same time, No Mere Mortals gives men a positive, concrete picture of what to pursue. Headship is framed not as a right to be served, but as a summons to nourish and cherish your wife, washing her with the “water of the word,” praying with her, and learning to dwell with her “according to knowledge.” Sumpter’s practical discussions about expectations, conflict (the “taking out the garbage” chapter), and even weddings and divorce help you see how theology actually plays out across the whole life of a marriage.

You should read this book if you want to grow into a man who takes his covenant vows seriously, rejects passive masculinity, and learns to lead with courage, tenderness, and a long view of eternity. It is not a comfortable read—but it is a clarifying one.

New Blog Posts This Week:

Wisdom and Folly: Covenantal Opposites

Coram Deo,
GraceMen