Here in America, most men bathe daily. For me, I do it in the morning, though I know some men choose to do so before bed. I prefer mornings because I do not like to feel the oily buildup on my skin later in the day. For whatever reason, it reminds me of the fact that I didn't actually bathe that actual day and this really grates on my nerves.
If I run and subsequently sweat - even just a little, I typically will rinse off with the hose on the patio. Again, I'm working towards not feeling sticky, oily, salty. Dirty.
Immediately following my daily shower, I put on deodorant. I use one particular brand that works well for me. I can remember whilst a teen, using a brand that only came in a cream. It was what I came to know firstly relative to the necessity of deodorant, and boy was it a lot of trouble to deal with. On hot, humid summer days, it took close to 1/2 an hour for the cream to dry under my arms. And as you might imagine, this was and felt incredibly gross as I headed off to school.
For a number of years now, I've been trimming my underarm hair, keeping it very close cut to my skin. I do this because it promotes that feeling of cleanliness (I have loads of armpit hair which I don't appreciate in the least).
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We've all run across men who stink of body odor. And this is tough to deal with because everyone mostly expects people to not smell at all unless it's a pleasant smell. There's like an unwritten rule regarding this.
Oftentimes, if you visit nursing homes, you'll find that the residents stink. This is because they're not adept any longer at bathing, therefore they choose not to. Obviously, if you go any number of days without bathing, you're going to start smelling ripe.
But where, overall, do we clean up for the most?
Church.
Even moreso than work, I would argue.
Church demands extra deodorant with a little cologne too.
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What is Samson Society?
It's a weekly meeting of Christian men who're willingly exposing their stink to everyone else there. They talk authentically about their marriage, children, vocation, their struggles with fear, anger, lust, anxiety, sexuality, and on and on, and they allow the portion of themselves which consistently stays well hidden (deodorized) to be exposed.
It's as simple an analogy as that.
Now, when you first step into a Samson Society meeting, you're likely going to be somewhat repulsed by the stench. We men hide so much of our true selves that it's become more of a reality to us than actual reality. Therefore, as a newbie, you need to be steady and not become intimidated by the stink.
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Back in 2012, my best friend and I signed up to compete in the 5k Warrior Dash right outside of Jackson. This friend was arguably my first Silas despite the fact that neither of us knew anything about Samson Society at the time. Unfortunately, the race was only run by me as my friend chose to bail. My dad was kind enough to accompany me to the site, and I did compete on that very cool spring morning.
Upon completion, I was an absolute mess, covered in mud and filth all over. The greatest disappointment I had was not having my friend there to similarly be covered in muck alongside Rob. I have to admit that it almost seemed sacrilege to be there competing without him by my side.
When you're involved in Samson Society, it's routine to run through the mud, but you do it together. And yes, from start to finish (in heaven) , you do smell pretty awful.
Come join us! It makes our deodorized life so much easier to live.
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