Being a Dad

It is great to be a Dad. I love my sons. I love being a role model and being watched. I always enjoy doing projects around my home. My oldest son, Owen, constantly begs to be a part of whatever the project might be and will get his little play tools out and copy whatever I do.

The other day I was having a conversation with someone and it appeared that they were sheltering their child from the harsh reality of life. I'm not trying to be overly judgemental, just a perception and a personal opinion. One kid had pushed their child and the parent didn't want their child to be friends with the offending child or even ever be around them again. It was a one time thing and the kids rarely even see each other. It was an over reaction, if you ask me.

I think as a father, it is so important to expose children to the reality of the world. Naturally, no one wants to see their children hurt. I can totally agree with that. However, it is very important that kids see their parents actually deal with issues. Now, personally, I would have just asked the little kid who pushed my child to stop or even better, I would have told my child to ask him to stop pushing. Then, problem solved. Instead, what this child learned was that he would be protected by his parents and that he doesn't have to deal with people being aggressive.

What a shame! The reality is that people don't always get along. Someone always has a toy or something that someone else wants. The reality is that many people feel that might makes right and people, especially boys, will be aggressive. Somewhere along the line, the child is going to have to learn to deal with situations like this. What example did they see from their parent? Run away, don't confront the issue, and someone else (parents) will defend me.

As a Christian, I think of how Jesus went into the temple. He was angry and even went to the extent to overturn the tables of the money changers in Mark 11. He let the people know that the situation was not right. There can be confrontations in life. It is perfectly fine to let someone know that their actions bothered you. It is OK to be angry. Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:26 to be angry and sin not. I can understand this parent's anger and urge to protect their child. But, I can't understand why the parent wouldn't deal with the situation.

My hope is that I always realize that little eyes and ears are always around and those eyes and ears are bound and determined to mimic everything I do, right and wrong. My hope is that my example is a good one. My hope is that they see me do more right than wrong and that my goal is to love the Lord. As Paul wrote in Ephesians 6:4, my hope is that I raise my children in the "discipline and instruction of the Lord."