Monday, July 2, 2012

Should Have Been Here....

I observed a conversation with a father and another person.  The father had his daughter with him, and she had been hurt or something.  Several minutes later he responded to her calls for help.  He went over and asked if there was something that he could do. 

She snapped back at him, “You should have been here a long time ago!” 

When he was relaying the story he said, “Well I guy I’ll have to give back this father of the year award.”  Everyone laughed, but I thought about it later. 

I think this is something that is happening in too many lives of young people now.  I know of it happening in too many places.  Guy and girl get together.  They get close enough that they end up having sex, and then the woman gets pregnant.  Guy gets scared because all he wanted was to feel good, and now there is a kid there.  Then he gets more distant, and may even just disappear.  Woman (read girl in many cases) is left to care for the child.  Time and time again studies show that kids that grow up with the father being present (as well as a mother) they tend to turn out more well adjusted.  Too often though, young people are growing up in single parent homes.... usually mom is the one doing the main raising while the dad gets occasional visits.  Sad really.

There is a whole generation of kids out there calling out for the help of a father, and dad is nowhere to be found.  Maybe later on they come to the point where they want to kick in, but by then it’s often too late.  “You should have been here a long time ago!” they say.  And it’s true.  Dads, be there for your kids.  Love them.  Inspire them.  Encourage them.  Affirm them.  Help them build their talents.  Love their mother.  Marry her.  Commit to her.  Love God above all else, and let everything  in life be filtered through God’s word.

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