“David Elkind, a psychologist, tells the story of visiting his middle son’s nursery school class, at the request of his teacher. She wanted him to observe a “problem child” in the class. While he was there, he caught a conversation between his son and some other boys. There conversation went like this:
Child A: “My daddy is a doctor and he makes lots of money and we have a swimming pool.”
Child B: “My daddy is a lawyer and he flies to Washington and talks to the president.”
Child C: “My daddy owns a company and we have our own airplane.”
Then David Elkind’s boy said, “My daddy is here!” And he proudly looked in his father’s direction.” ~ James S. Hewett
Being a father is an amazing privilege and honor. Unfortunately, some men view their position as father as a full time job with no pay, no vacation time, and no benefits. They treat their kids as an annoyance instead of a blessing. The Bible tells us that children are a blessing from the Lord (Ps. 127:3). We need to treat our children as the gifts they are.
Place your child in the above conversation between schoolmates. Would your child be more concerned about the job you have and the money you make or would they be happier to see you? As fathers, it is our responsibility to establish priorities in the home. We set the tone for the entire family. God made us men as the head of the household (1 Corinthians 11:3). This is not a task that should be taken lightly. Many of us take our secular jobs seriously, but do we take our jobs as fathers seriously as well?
Where have you set the priorities? Are your families priorities on sports, school, awards, movies, money, jobs, etc.? Or have you set the priorities on things like God, Jesus, church, the Bible, quality family time, and love? Here are a few things to try with your family:
Read your Bible together: take a few minutes out of your busy day and spend time in God’s word as a family.
Pray together: It’s important that your kids not only learn how to pray, but that they hear you pray. Thank God for your family and pray for your children so they can hear.
Spend quality time together: pick a movie, order a pizza and spend the evening as a family.
Family is important. Children are important. Being a father is important. God gave you a job. Don’t be an absent father. Let your children know “Daddy is here!”
— Kevin Harrington; efoothill.org
