In
our society one of the greatest roles men can have today is being a
father. Fatherhood is an important role
in the success of any family being well connected. In fact my father was active with my brothers
and I, and he demonstrated what fatherhood was all about in our home. When I became a father, I knew I had to take
my job as a parent serious in order to become the best dad I wanted to be for
my children. I truly believe, when fathers
are present in the home and active in their children lives, their marriage and family
life benefits, because the children grow up and develop in stable families. When fathers are absent in the home and in the
lives of their children, their marriage and family suffers, and we see the results
of it in our society with so many dysfunctional and disconnected families.
Since
Father’s Day is coming up this Sunday, I decided over the next two weeks to
write on the subject of “Fatherhood”. I
hope to encourage and challenge all men including myself, to take our rightful
place in the home, and fulfill our roles as fathers in our families. In the book “The Fatherhood Principle” written by the late Dr.
Myles Munroe he talks about men fulfilling their God-given roles as husbands
and fathers. Dr. Munroe says “The
Fatherhood Principle is – The father is the source that sustains, protects,
nourishes, and provides identity for that which he produces (children).” Fatherhood is a biblical principle in
Genesis 1:27, because being a father is rooted in God’s image, since we were
created by Him. The male was created to lead and father his
family as the head of the home. This statement
isn’t meant to dismiss the important role that women play as mothers in the
home, because they are the back bone of the family. They give support to their husbands working
together with them, and even in some cases where men are not present in the
home they are leading and taking care of their family.
Here are four points pertaining to fatherhood that we can practice
in our home. Today I will share the
first two points:
1. Fathers are the source of
life for their family.
Men are the source of life along with women when it comes to giving
birth to children. In other words, men we were created to be dads, and given the
ability to be the source of life for future generations of families. Fatherhood implies that as men, whatever we produce by way of
offspring (children) we have the sole responsibility to take care of them. We must understand that fatherhood isn’t just
about men biologically having a bunch of babies all over the place, but it’s about
men taking care of the obligation to father their children. I believe inherently we were created with the
ability to care of our children, but because of our selfish sinful behavior, it
has caused us to forsaken our responsibilities.
The goal as fathers should be is to leave a legacy that our children and
future generations can practice, that will help them have successful marriages
and families. The same goal is what my
wife and I have been striving to live out, and pass along to our three
children. As a father, I value my children
because God values the family.
2. Fathers are the providers
for their family. As providers we are to sustain
and nourish our children spiritually, emotionally, physically, relationally,
and financially. To nourish means to
supply with food or whatever is needed for life, health, and growth. Our society understands when it comes to men
financially taking care of their children, but fathering is more than just spending
money on them, it is making sure their needs are met to help them function in
life. As fathers, it is our
responsibility to train and teach our children about God and ways of the Lord
to give them a spiritual foundation. We must
nourish our children’s emotional needs by affirming and encouraging them, in
order to build them up emotionally. As
fathers we need to spend time with our children in order to connect with them. Finally, we are responsible for taking care
of our children’s physical, and financial needs giving them what they need, not
necessarily what they want.
The foundation of the family is the male, and if we are going to
have healthy families everything starts and ends with us as fathers. Next week we will continue to look at the
points of fatherhood that we can practice in our home.
Would love to hear your thoughts, questions, or feedback.
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