Responsible Father

As hinted over at my other blog: One of the benefits of living in a family is they can (and will) point out which of the things you do are annoying.

As father, you should (1) make sure this happens, and (2) make sure it happens with Grace and Love.

Dads, ask your son or daughter to tell you what they think the Gospel is. Ask for clarification when they are vague, encourage them where they have it right and correct them where they don’t.

Dads, have you told your kids about the Gospel this week?

When Debbie and I were infanticipating our first child (i.e. when she was pregnant with Carl), we went to the pre-labor this-is-what-you-should-be-ready-for class at her doctor’s clinic. The leader told us at the beginning of the class that we would make some of the decisions (when to take breaks, etc) by way of a “limited democracy” – which went this way: She would ask us how we wanted to do it and she would go with the first person who answered’s answer.

Dad’s, it might not be often, but there may be times when this kind of limited democracy works in making a decision with your kids.

Dads, do you know what they say about authentic apologizing? That you shouldn’t say, “I’m sorry, but . . . ” or “I’m sorry if . . . “?

That’s especially true with how you explain your regret and sadness and wish for forgiveness to your children.

Dads, there are times when your wife wants you to do something that saying a hesitant ‘Yes’ is worse than saying ‘No’. Figure out when these times are.

From my wife:

Dads, the easiest time to get your child back on the path is when they’ve just stepped off it.

Based on a quote from my wife:

Dads, the easiest time to get your children back on the correct path is when they’ve only taken one step off of it.