A MAN is known by his actions… Marks This show uses transparent dialogue to present guest(s) that could inspire and share lessons learned. We all need examples to Emulate… but ultimately, we must all measured against the greatest standard ever erect
@chasedavisoutdoors www.MenBuildMen.com www.perrymountainmotorcycleclub.com
Drew Brown on Facebook https://www.linkedin.com/in/drew-brown-ciso/ www.menbuildmen.com
Resources: Jeff Struecker on LinkedIn JeffStruecker.com Jeff Struecker's Unbeatable podcast Jeff Struecker's Amazon Author page Dusty Davis The Battle of Mogadishu Arlington National Cemetery The Munga, the toughest race on earth Three Rangers Foundation Raising a Modern-day Knight: A Father's Role in Guiding His Son to Authentic Manhood, by Robert Lewis Mogadishu The Road to Unafraid: How the Army's Top Ranger Faced Fear and Found Courage through "Black Hawk Down" and Beyond Summary: Jeff Struecker did not do anything more right or better than anybody who's buried in Arlington National Cemetery. God decided to spare him on the streets of Somalia. Jeff wants people to know he doesn't take credit for the sense of peace that he had. It was a gift from God. It was so overwhelmingly clear to his buddies that they were ready to start asking questions the next day.Jim invites you, the listener, if you are moved, to reach out to Jeff on his website or reach out to Jim on MenBuildMen.com to engage with them about the peace Jeff is talking about. It's a gift, a fruit of the Spirit. Jim and Jeff tell people about the most masculine man that ever existed, Jesus Christ. As men, they follow Jesus and you can too. Jim implores you to read the Bible and to reach out to Jim or Jeff with any questions.Jim invites Jeff to speak about learning to be a Christian in his roles of husband to his wife and father to his boys while being deployed. Jeff has led men in combat in some of the most dangerous situations Americans have seen in 75 years. By far, the hardest thing he has ever had to do is lead his family. He realized what they needed in a husband and a father and how far he was from what they needed. Jeff talked in an earlier part of this interview about coaching his sons. Now he talks about his responsibility to his daughters. He realized that when they looked for a man to marry, they would look for what they saw in their father. He recognized he needed to step up his game to be the example they needed. Jeff took the Bible seriously and they read it as a family. He read it personally and did devotions. The Bible taught him to be the spiritual leader of his family. He realized he needed to be farther along spiritually than his wife to lead her spiritually. He had to put some real work into that. Jeff started seeking out Godly men of all ages and stations in life and asking them what they had done right and what they had done wrong. Jeff repeats this is the hardest thing he has ever done because he knew himself, and what his family needed from him. He knew how far he was from what they needed him to be.Jeff challenges the guys who are listening right now; you need to be farther along spiritually. Your wife should be able to look at you and say, “I wish I had that man's faith.” You should be the kind of guy that your daughter says, “I'm going to marry a man exactly like my Daddy one day,” or a son says, “I'm going to grow up to be exactly like that man one day.” Jeff says if you put it in those terms, we all have some room to grow, right?Jim encourages the guys listening not to be fearful of reading the Bible in a devotional with their family. Just do it! Get after it! If you don't know how just begin to do it and it will grow. If you don't implement anything, then nothing's going to be done.Jeff knows he cannot force his wife or children to believe what he believes. No human being can push that on another human being. But he can live his life so consistently that even if they don't believe what he believes, they know beyond a shadow of a doubt that he believes it. That was Jeff's goal, so he had to be consistent. Jeff admits there were some days when he didn't feel like it! He had to get up and do it anyway because they needed to see it in him. Jeff also realized that God had given him a Godly wise wife, and he needed to listen to her advice. When they had family challenges and decisions to make, Jeff always asked her. He also gave her veto authority in his life for about the first 20 years. He said. “If this ever gets too much, if it's ever too difficult, you have the right to pull the veto card and I will look at doing something different.” Once or twice, the stress of what the military placed on their family was just too much, and at her veto, he made some changes that he didn't necessarily want to make, but he did it to keep his family. When Jeff retired from the Army, he had lots of accomplishments, but he said at his retirement, “None of that matters to me. What matters to me is I'm still married to my high school sweetheart. We have five children and a great relationship with all five of them and most of my friends can't say that. But I can say that because I made some big sacrifices along the way so that my family knew they came first.” Jim affirms that Jeff had been led by the Lord to understand that souls are more important than accomplishments. Why do some men look for accomplishments over a strong marriage or developing and producing Godly children?Jeff doesn't think most guys put accomplishments over family on purpose. They are in a pressure cooker between the needs of the family and the needs of the job that they have so they can feed their family. They don't choose wrong on purpose. They get confused between making a lot of money so their family can have nice things, and spending time with the family. Your family doesn't need nice things. They need Dad or a husband. If that means you don't get the big promotion, OK. When your children are grown and out of the house, when you've been married for 45 years, nobody's going to care about the possessions. It's going to be the time they had or didn't have with Dad that they will remember for the rest of their lives. If you're thinking you can't be great at both of these things at the same time, you are where most men and women are at this time. Jeff wants you to hear this: If you have to choose, then choose your family every time, because that will last for a lifetime. Your job will one day go away. If you've given your family what they deserve, they'll be around you on your deathbed.Jim speaks of the Marks of a Man, and one of them is sacrifice. Jim affirms Jeff for being willing to sacrifice. Some men are unwilling to sacrifice themselves for the betterment of their marriage or children. The Bible tells husbands to love their wives as Jesus sacrificed himself for the church. What does that sacrifice look like in a marriage? Jim affirms that Jeff has done a pretty good job of describing his military sacrifices in Mogadishu. A lot of Christian men are not doing that well in their marriages. Jeff had sought the advice of Godly mentors. A lot of guys try to do it solo but are not intentional about implementing something to correct their deficiencies. Jeff echoes Jim's words. Jeff had to make some sacrifices in his military career for his family. Looking back, he is glad that he made those sacrifices. There were a few dreams that he had in the Army that he never got the chance to pursue. He didn't pursue them because he knew the cost for his family would be too much. Jeff talks to the guy who's giving too much to work, “If you're not willing to make a little sacrifice and somebody else gets promoted in front of you, and you don't maybe make it to the top, but you still have a family, listen, man, part of the sacrifice means being willing to even put yourself in second place to your family. In fact, I kind of wonder sometimes, are you pursuing the corner office and the top job because of what it can give you and hoping that it's going to fill you up on the inside and make you feel good about yourself? Because if you are, it's going to totally let you down, man.” Jeff had to make some sacrifices at home, too. He didn't have hobbies for 20 years. He went to work, he worked a lot of hours, and the Army dictated his schedule. When he went home, he didn't have hobbies because he knew his wife and children needed his undivided attention. When the children left the home, then he felt he could start to pick up a hobby that he's always wanted to pick up. Giving your undivided attention to your family is putting yourself as a servant to them. The Bible challenges men to do that. Lead your family by serving. Jesus said the greatest among you will be the servant. Jeff says that's what God expects of men in the home. Jeff's new hobby will be riding across the desert of South Africa. Jim talks about meekness as strength under control. It is descriptive of Jesus in the Bible. Jim affirms that he hears meekness in Jeff's description of the Battle of Mogadishu. Jim invites you, the men listening, to evaluate yourselves and consider the example of meekness Jeff Struecker has provided for all of us to learn from. Meekness comes from the Bible. Jeff says a guy can't get there on his own. You need God's help to put yourself and your strength under control. Jim talks about the other men that Jeff approached for help to live a Godly family life and how those men helped him. Jim is doing these interviews to help you, the listener, to glean and listen for what you can implement in your life for your benefit. Jim asks men like Jeff to take time out of their schedule to teach you, the listener, how you can improve. Jeff is serving you by sharing his experiences. You can support him by following his experiences on The Munga and support his fundraising effort for the Three Rangers Foundation by providing resources. Jeff tells people as a pastor that you can't be righteous in this culture without help inside and outside you. Outside you, you need a couple of guys you can rely on who know you well and know what your challenges are. Without them, you're open to making some really big mistakes. You need one or two dudes who know you well enough that they can see before you go off the cliff and destroy your life. They can see it coming and they can step in. Inside you, you need supernatural help. It's the boldest, toughest man who ever walked this earth and his name is Jesus. You will need to get up in the morning and know you will mess this up if Jesus doesn't help you. You will need that heavenly help the next day and the next day for the rest of your life. A guy that has the power of Jesus inside and a couple of really good buddies outside has no limit to the good that he can do. You are not strong enough without Jesus. You were built by the Creator from the beginning to lean on God and to have a couple of other men in your life helping you along the way. Jim affirms that message. He thanks Jeff for coming on the show and for his willingness to share his stories, experiences, and insights. Call to Action: To you listeners, thank you for listening to this show in its entirety. Grab a Bible and get into it! Mash that five-star review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Share the episode link with others that it may benefit. If you have a sincere question about how we can improve our content, or you want to introduce us to other guests, please reach out to us at info@menbuildmen.com. Stay in the Word. Live for Jesus. Be a Man. Marks of a Man podcast is a continued production of Men Build Men. Find out more at www.menbuildmen.com. Email any questions to Jim at Info@MenBuildMen.com. See our Website: MenBuildMen.comEmail: Info@MenBuildMen.com Men Build Men on Facebook Jim Nicklas on Instagram
© 2020-2025 Ivy Podcast Discovery LLC
