Flight Plan

Flight Plan – Your mission to become a man
Written by Lee Burns & Braxton Brady
Published at PDS Publishing

About the Book

Every flight begins with a destination.

In today’s culture, teenage boys are faced with navigating the turbulent journey to manhood, often without an inkling of what that really means or any direction of how to get there. What does it mean to be a man? Flight Plan: Your Mission to Become a Man, written by educators Lee Burns and Braxton Brady, offers a vision of godly manhood and a complete and honest guide into the adventures ahead. 

Flight Plan uses the metaphor of a journey of flight to speak candidly to pre-teen and teen boys about friendships, peer pressure, drinking, drugs, girls and dating, puberty, sex, and school and family relationships.

Flying is an adventure. But like any journey, a good flight needs a great plan. Vision to see beyond the horizon. Preparation for the unexpected. A commitment to get from here to there. Every journey needs a plan. And becoming a man is no exception. The journey from boyhood to manhood is a big adventure filled with big choices. Some choices move us in the right direction, while others can throw us off course. So how can young men navigate to a successful life?

Like any sound flight plan, the book maps out the journey ahead giving practical advice for success and warnings for potential pitfalls any boy on his way to manhood is likely to encounter. Flight Plan shares how boys can:

· Make smart choices today that will impact their future

· Become responsible and accountable

· Handle changes in both their body and their relationships

· Understand the risks of drugs and alcohol

· Develop a God-centered life

The text strategically builds on seven biblically based virtues and each chapter concludes with questions for reflection and discussion, making Flight Plan an ideal teaching tool for boys’ small groups, mentoring groups, Sunday school classes, fathers and sons, or simply individual study.

Who are Lee Burns and Braxton Brady?

Lee Burns has always recognized the value in education. Raised in a family of seven children, Burns was taught early on the importance of personal growth and development. After discovering a passion for working with young people as a camp counselor, Burns began to pursue a career in education. A graduate of Dartmouth and Harvard, Burns is the headmaster of Presbyterian Day School (PDS) in Memphis, Tennessee. With over 600 students, PDS is one of the largest elementary boys schools in the country. In his role, Burns is dedicated to both the academic and spiritual development of his students. “We’ve realized that that we have a great opportunity to give our students a vision of manhood,” Burns says. “To mentor boys not just academically, but from a life perspective.” That realization led to the creation of Flight Plan, a practical guide for intentionally growing boys into men. “It’s important to know the person God wants us to be,” Burns says. “I believe God calls us into authentic manhood, as we pursue His purpose and passion for our lives.” He and his wife, Sarah, have three children

Braxton Brady believes that today’s world is in need of authentic, Godly men. As the chaplain of Presbyterian Day School (PDS) in Memphis, Tennessee, Brady has learned firsthand that manhood is not simply a matter of age. It’s a matter of intention.  Brady’s position and community offers him a unique perspective on the issue. During the day he serves at a prestigious school in an affluent area. Yet his home is in the inner city of Memphis, offering an eye-opening look at the challenges young men face no matter their social or economic status.  “I’ve learned that there is a void for young men that is not being taught.” That void inspired Brady to develop Flight Plan with co-author and colleague Lee Burns.  “I hope to call dads to be strategic with their kids, and intentional with their boys,” Brady says. “And to help dads navigate their sons through middle school and high school on their way to adulthood.” Brady and his wife, Carrie, have three children.

My Thoughts

This book is interesting for me as I have three boys to transform as men in the years to come.   When I received this book to review, my husband looked at it and thought it was an interesting concept.    He loved the idea to sit down with each of them and go through the book when they will come in age of doing so.    My oldest will be 10 this year and we are already preparing him on the though teenage years that are ahead.    Changes happen so fast without us thinking about them and time goes by so rapidly that it is always good to prepare ourselves in advance I find.  

The book is written in such a way that it takes the analogy of being a pilot of an airplane.  It starts with the basic as the myths about manhood and goes through a plan to be successful at becoming a man.  The books covers subjects like friendship, dealing with pressure, drinking issues, smoking, drugs, dealing with girls, puberty and the changes on his body, pornography, and more.   This book is packed with essential information for the boy in your family on how to become a man of God.    Going through it and following the plan will help to guarantee success in life.

Bottom line, Flight Plan teaches this definition of manhood i.e. what a real man can do which is to glorify God by seeking an adventuresome life of purpose and passion as he protects and serves others.  This definition of manhood, along with seven Biblically-based virtues presented in the book will serve as the foundation of a vision of manhood  to boys.   It will also give them some tools on how to approach the variety of teenage challenges.

Each chapter concludes with a series of questions for reflection and discussion with a man in the life of the boy.  It is strongly suggested that the boy can discuss the chapters with his father, mentor, coach or someone he can respect.   Ideally I would think the father should be involved with the boy but unfortunately in this time and age it isn’t always possible.   So I would like to encourage the moms who are single to find a fatherly figure who would be willing to sit down on a regular basis with their boy to go through this book with them.    The book also suggest that the boy who reads it should underline and write notes in the book as well as answering the questions.     Having three boys at home I am glad to have this book in hand to help them in the transition in flying solo one day.

Watch the Flight Plan promo video!

 

Flight Plan is available at your favourite bookstore.

Disclaimer: Thanks to B&B Media for sending me the featured product for review purpose. I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the sponsor in any way.  All opinions expressed here are only my own.