And So It Begins

“When I was a boy in my father’s house, still tender, and an only child of my mother, he taught me and said, “Lay hold of my words with all your heart; keep my commands and you will live. Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or swerve from them.”
- Proverbs 4:3-5 (NIV)

INTRODUCTION

The powerful influence of a father in the life of a child has, at times, been questioned in the last few decades. Recently there are more and more studies beginning to confirm that father’s are, indeed, crucial to the healthy development of children. This isn’t a secret to anyone familiar with scripture. Father’s are celebrated time and again in God’s word as responsible for teaching, leading, feeding and nurturing their children. This is not to say, in any way, that mom’s are not just as important. Quite the contrary, however, this book is specifically written to encourage men in their roles as fathers. The idea for this book actually comes out of experiences with men who’ve consistently shared life experiences with fathers who were “distant”, “unemotional”, “abusive”, “hurting”, “tired”, “busy” and more. Men who’ve shared their doubt about their own abilities to father their children and even confess failures due, in part, to the lack of any good role models.

Our big goal with this blog is to encourage men. We want men to know they can father in healthy ways even if they’ve had no role models in their lives. We want to give men tools they can learn and practice as they express their love for their children. We share this because we know, first hand, that fathering done poorly is devastating in our lives. Perhaps it’s been devastating in your life. The words in the Proverb quoted above are so true. Particularly powerful is this thought, children do not forget the words of their fathers! If you’re hoping to find words that are more helpful, we offer this book with hopes that God will bless you through it.