Walt Larimore - The Ultimate Guys Body Book. Not-So-Stupid Questions About Your Body

T he Ultimate Guys Body Book is primarily written to be a resource for Christian parents, especially the dads of young men ages ten to thirteen years old. Its designed to help you answer your boys tough questions about puberty and his changing body.

As a Christian family physician, I want you to have information you can trust a handbook for you and your son that is both medically reliable and biblically sound. To accomplish this, I have:

1. Reviewed the latest research and national guidelines through the lens of a biblical worldview.
2. Had every chapter reviewed by researchers, physicians, dieticians, psychologists, coaches, pastors, educators, parents, and theologians, who are all listed at the back of the book.
3. Had the book reviewed by the Christian Medical Association.

This book is designed to assist you in one of the most important and difficult jobs youll ever have raising and nurturing a young man to become physically, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually healthy. Your son needs coaching and mentoring to help him through adolescence and puberty on his journey from childhood to tweendom to adulthood.

Boys need to be assuredparticularly by their fathers (or male role models) that issues like wet dreams, hair growth, mood changes, voice change, and sexual desire are part of this normal and divinely designed transition. This book will help you do that.

You can maximize the benefits of this book in a couple of ways:

Option 1: Read through the book quickly to get an overview before giving it to your son. You dont have to study the book; just skim through. If it looks appropriate, and if you think your son is mature enough for the information, give it to him to read. But if you choose this option, I recommend you keep tabs of where your son is in the book. Give him the time and opportunity to talk to you about any of the information he encounters as he is reading.

Option 2: I most highly recommend particularly for dads slowly reading and studying the book with your son. I cant tell you how many comments Ive received from dads who used this option with my book Lintball Leos Not-So-Stupid Questions About Your Body. Almost without exception, dads said that the quality time they spent with their sons was extremely valuable.

If you are a single mom and uncomfortable reading this with your son, (or think he may be uncomfortable reading it with you) then find a trusted male role model that you know well who might be willing to go through this information with your son perhaps a youth pastor, coach, or the husband of a dear friend.

The key is that The Ultimate Guys Body Book can help you connect with your son and allow you to reassure him that he will not be alone during these sometimes scary and confusing changes he is experiencing.

Also, it demonstrates to him that you will be there to coach him, support him, root for him, and protect him during his adolescent years. It lets him know he can come to you for truthful answers on any issues that concern him. After all, if he cant ask you, hes likely to ask someone else and who knows what type of information he might get?

Whatever option you choose, dont worry if your son starts asking questions you cant answer. Just say, I dont know the answer. But lets see if we can find it together. Your sons physician, a coach at school, your pastor, or your sons youth pastor may all be excellent resources for more information.

When you are honest about what you know and what you dont know, you build bridges of communication and trust. Youre telling your son that you are giving him the real deal about issues that are of critical importance to him.

Last but not least, be prepared to spend time praying, meditating, studying, and learning with your son. Give him and yourself time to absorb the material and think, talk, and pray together about it. My hope is when you and your son are finished, this book will be worn and your efforts will be rewarded!

Another tip to consider is purchasing a journal to use as you and your son read this book. Write your name, your sons name, and the date you begin your journey on the first page. After you read a section of this book with your son, or after you have a talk with your son, record the discussions along with your feelings and thoughts. Your son may also benefit from using the journal to ask embarrassing questions in writing. If there is something your son wants to know but would rather not talk about, tell him to ask in the journal. You can offer to write back or talk openly. You can also write back- and-forth to let each other know when youre upset or angry without being confrontational. This method has proven invaluable opening new avenues of communication and for helping some kids express their awkward feelings. This journal can be wonderful information to share later with your son as he grows and matures.

Most of all, plan to have fun as you begin this life-changing journey with your son.

Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. Proverbs 22:6

Fathers bring [your children] up in the training and instruction of the Lord. Ephesians 6:4

I m on your side; Im your fan; I believe in you.
You not only have your entire life in front of you, but as a young Christianas a young man who is a follower of Jesusyou have a golden opportunity to change and improve the world.

But Im not old enough to change the world, you might say. Im too young to make a difference! That is not the case. Decisions you make now and for the next few years will not only change the rest of your life, they could literally change eternity. Let me explain:

To change the world and to carry on his message, Jesus chose a group of young men to train who were close to your age. As you look at the gospels, youll see that Jesus spoke to the crowds, but he seemed to give preference to smaller groups including the twelve young men he chose for special trainingout of which he picked three for advanced training.

Gunter Krallman, in his book Mentoring for Mission, points out that Jesus was a rabbi, and rabbis typically chose disciples who were between the ages of fourteen and sixteen. At the time of Jesus, Galilean boys typically married at age eighteen, and yet only Simon Peter was said to have been married.

The story of the temple tax also sheds some light on the ages of the disciples. According to the Old Testament (Exodus 30:14), this tax was due to the temple from all Hebrew males twenty and older. Yet in Matthew 17:24 25, after Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma temple tax came to Peter and asked, Doesnt your teacher pay the temple tax?

Yes, he does, Peter replied.

Jesus then told Peter,