Tips for the first half of life: For my sons

I've been meeting over the past few months with a group of men early (VERY early) on Friday mornings. It's a program about living life called "Men's Fraternity".  Last week we finished up the first semester before breaking until  after the new year, and the program leader, Robert Lewis, took the  opportunity to summarize the ground we've covered in the last few months. The resulting summary was "Practical 'Take Homes' for Two Halves of he Gread Adventure [Life]".  While I myself am will into what Lewis refers to as the "Second Half", I  could resonate with his advice for young men in the "First Half" of life.  In fact, I wondered how my life might have been different if I had  taken this advice to heart as a young man.

I have two sons, ages 30 and 28, who are definitely  in the  First Half.  So I pass on these tips to them... but also to any other young man who would care to read them.

1. Invest regularly in your marriage, and make your wife your best friend.

2. Learn who you ARE and who you ARE NOT.  Embrace who you are, and be you to the fullest, and don't try to be someone you are not, nor to live your life as though you were.

3. Always live within your means, stay out of debt, and learn to save and give away. [Dave Ramsey has a tremendous program for learning this.]

4. Go for  great EXPERIENCES over acquiring more STUFF.

5. Get to  know  God personally.

6. Never stop fighting for purity and  a life of integrity.  It's the foundation of a successful second half.

7. Learn to ask forgiveness... from God and others.

8.  Develop men friends you can love an be accountable to - make them your own personal "board of directors".

9.  Start developing and refining a long-range vision - a North Star for your life.