Based on what I have learned with my twenty-eight years of experience on this world, I have concluded that it is hard being a man. Therefore it is safe for me to assume that it must be hard being a dad. This world is continually being modified from its original purpose of glorifying God to castigating Him. The enemy does its best to accomplish this by attacking men directly. We have a lot going against us, but we have even more going for us.
God gave us fathers. He has hardwired us to respond and learn from our dads. At the beginning of our relationship with our fathers their words are weighty and powerful, their presence almost tangible, and their love sustains not only us, but the entire household. Our fathers help us find ourselves in this world by modeling their own role. It comes as no surprise when the father is not present, or when fatherly responsibilities are not taken seriously, that family suffers. As a school teacher in a public school system and at a psychiatric facility I can tell without looking at any records which child has a loving father figure in their life. They are not perfect, but they have a healthy sense of self. They value others, and even if they haven’t found God they at least acknowledge that there is something or someone greater than themselves. These are critical developments that every child must have in order to have a relationship with our heavenly father.
When I think about the weight of a father’s responsibilities a lump starts to grow in my throat. There are so many distractions and pitfalls waiting to ensnare me and keep me from fulfilling my role as a soon-to-be dad. It takes a perfect father to raise an imperfect child. Thankfully we have a perfect father who is up to the task. God constantly reminds me that yes, I do need to behave perfectly, but he has placed that expectation on me because He can guide me through the path of perfection.
For this Father’s Day I wanted to publicly thank my two father figures. My father-in-law accepted me as a son the moment he got past my long hair and ripped up jeans. He has always been quick to invest in me every resource at his disposal. I love you Craig.
As for my father, I am learning daily more and more of all the blessings of being his son. I am who I am because of my father’s love and dedication to not only me but my whole family. He has always been present for me to model his role as a father. I learned who I am because of him. I have found my place in this world and more importantly I have found my place as a child of God. Yes, my father is an imperfect man, but so am I. It is through his openness and transparency that I have learned to rely on my perfect heavenly father just as my dad has done while raising me. I love you immensely dad.
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