Pentecostal Male

I thought it would be appropriate and perhaps appreciated by other Pentecostal males that might relate if I spoke about the difficulty of "coming out" from the world but still "blending in".

If you are a woman and attend a United Pentecostal Church International service, it's very easy to tell who is and is not a member of the church. You simply look for the tell tale signs: uncut hair, floor length skirts/dresses, unpeirced ears, no tattoos, skin covered.

But if you are a male, you are kind of stuck. Regardless of how dedicated you are to the Lord and your congregation you are virtually incapable of separating yourself from the heathens of the world. Sure you can make yourself look "clean cut", but so can any other man, not to mention So What? If being "clean cut" is the measure of a separated and saintly man, then there is a multitude of heathens that are passing themselves off as saints and are completely unaware of their false impression.

Here is where it may get a little breathy. When Elizabeth and I lived in North Manchester Indiana we attended two meeting houses there. Both were part of the Old German Baptist Brethren assembly. This is where both she and I were influenced by the plain lifestyle. Even though she grew up around the Amish and Mennonite, they were not an influence on her. Though I hope that someday she will post on why she felt convicted to cover.

Because I had been raised in a non plain family I struggled with both wanting to appease the UPCI and also obey my convictions and also my understanding of what the Bible refers to as a "peculiar people".

Eventually I stubbornly held by my convictions that Christians should not be camouflaged as heathens, but rather that they should stand out and be peculiar-even if we are plain and unassuming at the same time.

I'll describe myself. I have short brown hair, a beard that is about 20"s long. I wear button-up long-sleeve shirts.
My favorite is one that Elizabeth made for me. Another post I'd like to see her do, I've never worn a better shirt. It was her first one too.

I wear broadfall pants. If any of you guys have questions about them feel free to ask. I'll never go back to zippers and belts.

I also wear a typical straw hat like you would see on an Amish man. I wear one pair of boots that are leather pull-on. I feel strongly that men should only wear boots as they are the one type of footwear that conveys a man is always ready for work whenever and wherever it may need to be done.

I feel no shame in admitting that when I buy boots, that they usually cost about 120$. That may seem expensive but when considering that they will last me easily three and maybe as much as five years that is a good use of money. That comes down to 3 dollars and thirty three cense a month. That is being a proper steward of your money. And when you consider that my latest pair can be resoled, that's an even greater increase on the savings.

In a day when cheap boots may only last a year or less and still cost 40-60$, it is much wiser to forgo the cheap boots and to purchase the expensive quality boots. Call it a guilty pleasure as we "stewards of our money" are prone to say at such an extravagance, but the savings are real and cannot be denied.

Now back to the real point. The Bible tells us that we are a peculiar people 1st Peter 2:9. The real meaning of that word "peculiar" in the Greek is that we are a possession of God's.

I always drew issue with men that felt they had to make up for their inability to be as distinguished as their female counterparts. These were the men that would wear clothes that said "Jesus" or a Bible verse on it. It just seems desperate and tacky to me. Our sainthood should stand on it's own.

I've never had to resort to that, yet people still always know that I am a Christian. Some people ask me if I am Brethren, others ask me if I am Amish, others ask me if i am Mennonite, others even ask if I'm Mormon. I always tell them no-I am a plain Pentecostal, also known as a Porter.

Elizabeth and I were rejected by the UPCI, at least locally, for holding to our convictions. The UPCI has a strict "no beard" policy. I've yet to find the scripture to justify their stance, so instead of debating-I simply and passively walk away. Both parties feeling as though they have lost nothing.

The mentioned church feels that it is ridden of a problem and I leave feeling I am free to be genuine to my convictions and am not bound to appeasing them anymore.

The modern UPCI church has a problem with retaining male membership. One of the foremost reasons for this is that they undermine the masculinity of men that desire to join or have joined. The picture of an ideal Pentecostal male is a clean-cut suit wearing pencil-pushing accountant type.

I'll never look like that.

The female youth of the church are taught to pursue men that look like the aforementioned, when they are unable to find him they begin to feel dejected and gradually fade out of the church. It's a sad cycle that no one seems to be trying to do anything about.

I may have left the UPCI, but I in no way have left my walk with God.

The shame is, that aside from a few of the UPCI's standards being wrong-overall they have all of the doctrine right. Though I would prefer they use prayer rooms instead of being so ostentatious.