“Hey dad!” my son Kyler called out to me on this particular day with the question “Are you sigma?” As the father of a 13-year-old son, I have learned that I need to be suspicious (or “sus”) of these types of questions. Rarely do the new terms coming from our youth these days mean what we think they do. I’ve learned from past experience that quickly answering these kinds of questions give my son way too much entertainment at my expense. So, my response was: “Yo brah…hit you up later on that.” Just joking! I said what any suspicious and self-respecting father would say, “Let me get back to you on that question once I understand what sigma means.”
I Googled the urban definition of sigma: A popular, successful, but highly independent and self-reliant person. Typically male. One step above an alpha male. A lone wolf. After clarifying the meaning, I answered his question. “No, I am not sigma, and let me tell you why. I want to finish strong...”
Our culture celebrates the sigma male. The Isolated, self-sufficient, yet quietly desperate man. Even though they are around other men, they don’t benefit from the iron sharpening iron moments of authentic relationships and accountability, which yields a rusty life; a life void of the “cleansing friction” that comes from following the Way with other men. The enemy knows the fate of the lone wolf, therefore he tricks men into living a life in isolation, where they are easier to take down.
Dr. Paul Tripp, a popular Christian counselor, pastor and author states in an interview that "one characteristic of Christian men who don’t finish well in life is that they’ve become separated from authentic community and from true peer relationships." In other words, a man that allows himself to be separated from other men who are also focused on the person of Jesus Christ is analogous to the smaller and weaker animal being separated from their herd by a lion…it rarely ends well.
I desire to live the best life that I can, and that is done by being a part of a Christ-centered “pack” of men. Focused Living calls our packs forums and GRIP groups. These packs of men following Christ exist all over Columbia. These groups are always excited to accept another man into the pack… even if he currently considers himself to be a sigma male.
Please join us in praying that the men in this city would increasingly choose the Way of humility, community, and accountability. Jason