Excerpt from "Answering the Guy Questions" by Leslie Ludy

"So what exactly is a warrior-poet?

A warrior-poet has made a sacred covenant with his holy King. He has chosen to deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Christ. He no longer lives to please his own selfish desires. He lives to please his Lord. He is not seeking to draw attention to himself but to draw all eyes to Jesus. As John the Baptist said, "He must increase, but I must decrease." (John 3:30). That's the motto of the warrior-poet's life.

When I was first getting to know Eric, I saw a marked difference between the way he treated me and the way almost every other guy on the planet did. For one thing, he wasn't pursuing the opposite sex. He was pursuing Christ. The majority of his time was spent in prayer, in biblical study, and in serving God's kingdom on the mission field. In spite of his dynamic personality, he never sought to gain applause or be the center of attention. He didn't seek out attractive young women. Rather, he sought out the loners and the outcasts; those whom no one paid attention to. At a party or church get-together, he would often spend his entire evening in a corner, encouraging someone that everyone else had overlooked. Money had no hold on him. While other young men his age pursued success and wealth, Eric gave his money away and depended upon God alone for provision. I vividly remember one time when a money-hungry, multilevel marketer cornered Eric and asked him what kind of car he dreamed about driving. Eric shrugged and said, "I just need a car that runs." The salesman was stunned that Eric wasn't pining after a BMW like every other college-age guy he knew.

Eric didn't flirt - with me or any other girl. He'd made a commitment to honor and respect his future wife. Even in his friendships with girls, though he was friendly, he was careful not to draw their hearts toward them. He was set apart - first for Christ and then for his future wife.

Not long before I met him, God had taken Eric through a process of laying down every "idol" in his life. In college he'd been in a premed program, at the top of his class. In the midst of all his forward momentum, God asked him to lay down his money and career pursuits and give his life to the mission field. Eric's obedience caused many raised eyebrows among his peers - but his spiritual life went from mediocre to vibrant in a matter of weeks. He was extremely athletic - a soccer player and weightlifter. He was an impeccable dresser - always wearing the absolute latest styles. He was popular without even trying to be - elected homecoming king in both high school and college. God asked him to lay those things at the cross of Christ and even be willing to appear a fool to the world for the sake of the One who gave everything for him. Instead of leaning upon his own strength, prestige, style, appearance, or personality, he learned to lean on Christ alone.

It was Eric’s willingness to lay down everything for Christ that shaped him into a warrior-poet. As he laid down all worldly allurements and learned to love his Lord with all his heart, soul, mind, and strength, he became a mighty, valiant, loving, compassionate man of God. No longer was he just a church-going, self-focused male with a Christian label. He was radically abandoned to the King of the universe – and every area of his life exuded the glory of Christ.

Every time I was around Eric, I found that afterward I was not thinking about Eric Ludy. I was thinking about Jesus Christ. Often after spending an hour or two listening to him passionately talk about the Word of God, I ended up in my room with my Bible, eagerly pouring over the Scriptures and seeking to know Christ more. Unlike anyone I had ever known, Eric Ludy drew me closer to Jesus. In fact, his example was a key factor in my own decision to live a radically surrendered life for Christ.

There are lots of guys that demonstrate Christian qualities at first glance, but in reality they fall far short of the warrior-poet standard. Before Eric’s radical surrender to Christ, he would have come across as a wonderful, passionate, godly young man. He was committed to saving sex until marriage. He was committed to living an upright life of hard work and integrity. He was polite and well-mannered. He didn’t drink or do drugs. His language was clean.

But self still ruled his existence. He wasn’t consumed with Jesus Christ. He was consumed with selfish desires. Though he was governed by Christian morals, his life was built around the pursuit of worldly attractions and allurements – pursuing money, success, and the applause of men. He was the typical Christian male. Most Christian girls would have seen him as an amazing catch. But God had so much more in mind regarding his masculinity. And I thank God ever day that Eric was willing to stand up and answer the call of Christ.”

Wow…as I read this for the first time I can truly tell that she was in love with this man she called her husband. She is not afraid to say that once he was nothing but a selfish male, seeking his own ambitious future. It is only through the grace and love of Christ that we can look to God instead of ourselves…to look outside instead of inside. I especially love how she spoke about how Eric turned her to think more and more about Christ, to leave her pouring over Scripture in her room. She didn’t spend hours in her room dreaming of how he said this or did this...that would have insinuated that he spent a lot of his time with her showing off and trying to impress her. It would have also assumed that she was a simple being, dreaming of things that are not yet; wasting time that God gave her in order to spend it day dreaming about a guy.

These two people, now drawn together and married, have drastically inspired me not to spend time dreaming about the latest cute guy I met, what he said, what he did, what could be between us. But rather, it has inspired me to seek after the heart of God more. How more honoring of my future husband is it to use productive hours of the day simply dreaming about that guy that I bumped into and he showed a little bit of interest in me. I want to save my heart, protect it. God alone is trustworthy enough to handle my heart until the day I say, “I do”. I thank God that I have two parents who help me towards this end. I am also so very thankful for Leslie Ludy and her husband for not only glorifying God through their relationship both before and after their marriage, but to share it freely and openly with their readers. God is a truly a gracious God to share such beautiful Christian love stories such as these. How can spending my days dreaming away the hours before God brings a warrior-poet into my life lead me closer to my Heavenly Father?