3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Powerful Insight for Men, June 4, 2008
This review is from: The Expeditionary Man: The Adventure a Man Wants, the Leader His Family Needs (Hardcover)
Though there are numerous manhood-type books on the market today, this book distinguishes itself from the rest in a few profound ways. Perhaps most striking is Wagner's dismissal of the pursuit of the "balanced life." He expertly reveals the flawed thinking and behavior that is the result of pursuing balance in work, family, and ministry. Additionally, he explains that while balance can sometimes be attained superficially, the heart isn't as easy to manipulate. Who wants pseudo-external balance with internal turmoil?
Wagner simply challenges men to redirect their focus from work/ministry-first to family-first. Leading and serving his family, Wagner explains, is where a man can truly find fulfillment and adventure in life.
As an avid reader, this book was also distinguishing as a result of Wagner's skill in writing. Pop culture and historical references are expertly interwoven into the text, and Wagner's honesty at his own personal shortcomings further adds to the power of this book.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A hard teaching which we should prayerfully consider, June 4, 2008
This review is from: The Expeditionary Man: The Adventure a Man Wants, the Leader His Family Needs (Hardcover)
"This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?" More than once this quote from the gospels crossed my mind while reading this book. In Expeditionary Man, Rich Wagner marries two seemingly opposing needs for men: the need for adventure and the desire to be a good provider and leader of a family. Part autobiography, part analogy, this book takes the reader on a journey through Rich's own struggles to define his own role as a husband and father in terms that would fulfill his need to climb his own personal mountains and make his own personal accomplishments.
I know first-hand how important Rich's family is to him. I was one of Rich's former employees when he was going the dotcom entrepreneur route. We spent many a late night perfecting software code that we hoped would be the next great product, to the detriment of our family lives. It is fascinating to learn how he has refused to accept the premise that we just need to have "balance" between two opposite ambitions, an approach that groups like Promise Keepers promote, and began to see his family life as the very adventure he was seeking.
Not everyone can go the route of working from home full time, and certainly not everyone has the means to homeschool their children. Rich made financial sacrifices and took risks, but along the way he learned some great lessons and seems to have found the path to his personal "summit".
In this book, by walking with Rich and reading entertaining movie analogies, stories from famous assaults on Everest, and his personal struggles, you can begin to see how it CAN be done. Easier said than done, of course, but if you accept the premise that a man's wife and children ARE his God-intended adventure, and are willing to commit to altering your perspective a bit, you may well be able to follow Rich to the summit.
This book is a fast-paced read, but one that you will probably want to read a second time as you digest what he's saying and decide how it may apply to your own life, and maybe ponder some course corrections in your own life.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Father's Faith, May 30, 2008
This review is from: The Expeditionary Man: The Adventure a Man Wants, the Leader His Family Needs (Hardcover)
Rich Wagner has written an outstanding book, especially for young families with children in the home. His approach includes his own example of how a man must arrange his life so that the really important things come first. He takes us from the corporate world where a man's common sense prevails, to a faith centered family life in time for him to help his wife home school his sons. He brings his own eternal perspective to that classroom and his life. Rich recognizes that men are created with an adventurous spirit which has it's place but can get in the way as a Christian father sets his priorities. The book is well referenced to scripture and other writers, including C.S.Lewis and Oswald Chambers.
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