Thoughts for fathering…..

The haunting song I asked you to listen to yesterday reveals so much of how we can go wrong as fathers, and grandfathers.  It is the natural state of men to define themselves by their accomplishments, their success, as it were.  Unfortunately, many men see financial success as the penacle of their worth.  Amassing wealth is not a bad thing, but how we define wealth is tricky. I’ve known men with great amounts of financial wealth,  but families that were a train wreck.  If a man leaves a fortune to his family but the family is filled with disfunction and doubt, has he been a success?

I believe a man must give his family several things; love, respect, protection and security.  We give love by putting them above all things in our lives with the exception of our faith.  We show them respect by allowing them to be themselves, but we guide them by the example we set in our own lives.  Character, integrity and empathy are all best taught by living them ourselves.  We assure them of protection, by showing that we are prepared to ward off danger and that we are capable of doing so.  Finally we provide security in terms of a roof over their heads, food on the table and the knowledge that you have asked God to offer the greatest security for your family.

Children will learn to be the adults we model, what are we modeling?  Teach them to love themselves so they can love others, teach them to respect themselves so they can respect others.  Teach them to protect others because they know they are protected.  Finally teach them the true meaning of security in Jesus Christ.

Good Friday and blessings,

the pilgrim