A rational, God centered book on sexuality It's important to point out that the author begins his premise with the person of God. In a world in which discussion of gender and sexuality starts with subjectivism and is driven by the golden calf of one's emotions, this book gets down to brass tacks quickly: who is God and what is His purpose for sexuality? The author provides the answers throughout this work combining a steadfast commitment to the Scriptures with a thorough understanding of the propaganda that currently plagues our culture and is infiltrating the Church.The book brings topics to the forefront that were once treated as basic truths: Men and women are different...the world needs both masculine and feminine virtue...the household is the most fundamental unit of a society...children are a blessing...one's identity is found in a saving relationship with Christ, not in his or her sexuality. The author explains these topics in such a way that demonstrates that truth is always timely because it's timeless. This isn't a call to return to the "good old days", it's a much needed call for God's Word to define gender and sexuality in our present age.Though written to a Christian audience, anyone who regularly asks themselves "What is going on?" in modern culture will benefit from this book. How did we get here? As the author points out (quoting Hemingway)..."Gradually, then suddenly." If all of the sudden you feel as though you're living in a bizarre world void of reason and truth, this God centered book will be comforting, encouraging, and enlightening. Highly recommend.

Read this book! God's Good Design speaks to some of the most pressing issues of our day. It is written for Pastors/Counselors/Christians active in ministry, as well as laymembers, to better understand & apply a Biblical Worldview to our current cultural context. This is not an apologetic book; Clary assumes his reader already has a working knowledge of Scripture and a desire to follow God's design. He does a good job of explaining Biblical Principles and the context of the ancient world in which they were written. He carefully threads the needle of providing context without dismissing the commands of Scripture, and he avoids getting overly prescriptive for individual modern situations. Personally, I found the most thought-provoking and innovative portion of the book to be his chapter on Manhood/Fatherhood; if you are on the fence, I recommend reading the book for that section alone, if nothing else! One of my favorite quotes from the book is this:"A boy’s masculinity develops by differentiating himself, becomingmore independent, and resisting his mother’s nurturing impulse to keep him dependent on her. This differentiation is necessary for him to take on responsibilities for a future wife and children. In a way, his mother’s nurturing virtues can be a hindrance to his masculine development. These motherly instincts are good in themselves but need to be counterbalanced by fatherly instincts that challenge him towards greater independence...What I am saying is that the virtue of masculine strength is oriented towards taking responsibility for others, which is something he must cultivate within himself."If you are a Christian seeking to faithfully apply scripture to your life and/or the lives of those you shepherd, I highly recommend you read this book! Read it, hold it up to scripture, discuss it with others, chew on the ideas. Even if you don't agree with all of Clary's points or conclusions, I guarantee his book will give you much to learn from and ponder.

A Succinct Guide of a Dissertation Topic There’s many books on the issue that is discussed in this book. Books on manhood, womanhood, sexuality, and the like have been written for decades by Christians and academics alike. Sexuality can be a very complex topic that whole dissertations have likely been written on for years. Many of these works either are incredibly complex or simplify/emotionalize the issue so much that it’s not thoughtful.Michael’s book though does an exceptional job at tackling multiple facets of sexuality according to the Bible in just about 300 pages. He discusses the household, marriage, a theology on sexuality, work life, and much more. He speaks with brevity, simplicity, and yet with clear reason and logic which is exactly what the common laymen needs on such a topic.When I have someone who asks about sexuality and the Bible, I can finally have a go-to book I can recommend to anyone— to the academic and to the laymen. It’s a great primer to sexuality that anyone can read and be challenged!

A field-guide for troubled times This book is very much laid out like a field guide to the most incendiary topics of our day from a biblical, orthodox Christian perspective. In all of these aims, Michael has achieved just that. The insights in this book are worth their weight in gold, and are sure to challenge, and deepen your knowledge, on God's good design behind human sexuality. We are undoubtedly in a grand spiritual war for the preservation of souls, and it is writings like these that will encourage and teach us how to speak that which we ought to speak in a landscape of traditional sucession.Read through this with study groups. Read through this with those you mean to disciple. Read through this with close friends and family. It is certain to bring you a depth of clarity in the ever-expanding confusion our current day has been plunged into.

Read this book! God's Good Design speaks to some of the most pressing issues of our day. It is written for Pastors/Counselors/Christians active in ministry, as well as laymembers, to better understand & apply a Biblical Worldview to our current cultural context. This is not an apologetic book; Clary assumes his reader already has a working knowledge of Scripture and a desire to follow God's design. He does a good job of explaining Biblical Principles and the context of the ancient world in which they were written. He carefully threads the needle of providing context without dismissing the commands of Scripture, and he avoids getting overly prescriptive for individual modern situations. Personally, I found the most thought-provoking and innovative portion of the book to be his chapter on Manhood/Fatherhood; if you are on the fence, I recommend reading the book for that section alone, if nothing else! One of my favorite quotes from the book is this:"A boy’s masculinity develops by differentiating himself, becomingmore independent, and resisting his mother’s nurturing impulse to keep him dependent on her. This differentiation is necessary for him to take on responsibilities for a future wife and children. In a way, his mother’s nurturing virtues can be a hindrance to his masculine development. These motherly instincts are good in themselves but need to be counterbalanced by fatherly instincts that challenge him towards greater independence...What I am saying is that the virtue of masculine strength is oriented towards taking responsibility for others, which is something he must cultivate within himself."If you are a Christian seeking to faithfully apply scripture to your life and/or the lives of those you shepherd, I highly recommend you read this book! Read it, hold it up to scripture, discuss it with others, chew on the ideas. Even if you don't agree with all of Clary's points or conclusions, I guarantee his book will give you much to learn from and ponder.

A wonderfully Pastoral overview of God's design for men and women. God's Good Design is a wonderful book that gives an overview of how God designed human sexuality. Michael pulls wisdom and experience from his ministry as a church planter to discuss one of the biggest topics of confusion in the American church today.Michael does not seek to "bring us back to the 1950's" or try to apply his marriage's structure as a universal truth, but instead he works through scripture and explains how God designed us to be as men and women. Michael provides a deep dive into what the household looked like in the Biblical era and discusses how modernity has brought challenges to the household.This book has a very pastoral tone and could be given to someone to help them understand the Biblical view of marriage, families, and sexuality.