Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Single Dad Manifesto


Fatherhood...being a great and loving father...being the spiritual leader of my children...being a man of courage. These thoughts and convictions have been on my heart for some time now. I have been waiting for my heart to cohesively communicate with my brain so that you may understand what I thinking and feeling.
    
As most of you know...I am a single dad raising two elementary school aged children. I love my kids more than words can describe. I am forever blessed and changed by having Sam and Hannah in my life. I am a better human being because of my children. Being a single dad can be very challenging yet extremely rewarding. Raising my two children by myself wasn't a choice I made but it's a part of my life that I accept and that I am more than happy to have. I am challenged everyday in this endeavor but through patience, love and faith in my best friend Jesus... I am able to do it. 

I have came to the conclusion that there are a lot of dads out there not stepping up to the plate of fatherhood. Don't get me wrong...there are a lot of great men being the fathers that are desired and expected of them. But...and this is a big BUT...there are far too many men lacking in the fatherhood department. To be clear I am not perfect either...I make mistakes too. I am not writing this about them though. I am writing this about me. About who I want to become. About who I strive to become everyday. Simply stated...i desire to be the most loving and compassionate dad I can be to my children.   
  
  I want to tell u about a goal of mine. That goal is to be the father that my kids deserve, need and desire from the depths of their little hearts. I want to be the father that my children never forget. I want to be the father that my children will always look to for guidance, love and compassion. I pray that I can build my children up with wisdom and love...and not tear them down with hurtful words. I pray that my kids can look back when they have children of their own and be proud of the father I was. That's a BIG goal. It is a life long never-ending goal. I goal that I am striving and determined to fulfill. Its goal that I can not do on my own. It takes prayer, discipline and faith in my God...my Jesus. 

I get on my knees and pray that I can do ALL the things I just said. I pray that I can fulfill my goals. I pray that God will make the impossible possible. I pray that other fathers and men have the same desire to become the men who this society so desperately needs. Men of love, compassion, wisdom and courage. It starts with us...with what's deep down in our hearts. But it also takes you the reader...the wife...the mother...the friend to help us become the men and fathers we are called to be and desire to be.