Father's Day

"The righteous man walks in his integrity; His children are blessed after him." Proverbs 20:7

Whether through personal experience or being a witness to the experiences of others, very few people are ignorant to the problems in our families today. While the focus seems to always be on the "fruit" of these problems, very little attention is focused on the "root" of these problems. Yet, nearly every societal problem facing us today can be tied to one particular area; fathers, or lack thereof. We can talk all day about topics like gun violence, abortion, rates of incarceration, poverty, etc. But, at the core of many of these problems is the absence of fathers.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau, "24 million children in America -- one out of every three -- live in biological father-absent homes" and "Children in father-absent homes are almost four times more likely to be poor."  The Journal of Marriage and Family states, "Children born to single mothers show higher levels of aggressive behavior than children born to married mothers." It has been stated that, "Infant mortality rates are 1.8 times higher for infants of unmarried mothers than for married mothers." The Journal of Research on Adolescence states, "Even after controlling for income, youths in father-absent households still had significantly higher odds of incarceration than those in mother-father families. Youths who never had a father in the household experienced the highest odds." Another study concluded that, "Being raised by a single mother raises the risk of teen pregnancy, marrying with less than a high school degree, and forming a marriage where both partners have less than a high school degree." These heartbreaking statements go on to conclude how the lack of fathers is a contributing factor in child abuse, drug and alcohol abuse, childhood obesity and poor performance in school. Now, I know there are all sorts of factors that contribute to a father not being in the household; many of which are out of the man's control, but you get the point. The blessing in all of this is that the statistics and conclusions made are nearly opposite of these negative statistics when the father is present in the lives of his children.

By God's grace, I still have my father in my life. After nearly losing him when I was 11 years old, God has used him as a picture of His love, faithfulness, perseverance, guidance and, most of all, strength. It is no coincidence that my brothers have gone on to be great fathers who have positively influenced their own sons who are just now becoming fathers themselves. Interestingly enough, the year I was saved was the same year my father became a deacon. While we have not always been in agreement on the things of the Lord, I have never questioned the impact that Jesus Christ has had on my father. Not only have I witnessed the Lord help my father in his endless list of physical battles, I have also seen Him guide my father through his own spiritual and emotional battles as well. But, the the thing that has impacted me the most is the love, grace and compassion my father has displayed as he has aged. While many people his age display a bitterness towards life and others, my father has remained kind, considerate and has a heart for others to the point he does what he can to tell them about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know this is because he is resting in and depending on the love of God he is experiencing through his faith in Jesus Christ. All my life, as best as he could, my father has impressed on me the things of the Lord. Even when I wasn't a Christian, I can look back on the times that the things my father had told me about God guided me. After coming to faith in Jesus Christ, my father and I have had numerous conversations about the Lord, which God has used in shaping my own relationship with Him. I say all of this to point out just how important fathers are to their children and especially their sons. Because my father has been in my life and the lives of my family, we have grown up to defy the negative statistics and become positive, God-fearing contributors to society. I thank my Father in heaven for blessing me with such a great earthly father. My prayer is that all the fathers out there will trust in our Heavenly Father, through faith in Jesus Christ, and "Train up a child in the way he should go (Proverbs 22:6)" so we can have the families, communities, societies and world we desire. Happy Father's Day!