In my last post, I posed the question, “How does support for abortion fulfill the Great Commandment and the Great Commission?” which is the first of four key questions to address to determine if the pro-choice position is consistent with the life and teachings of Jesus. However, a Christian who professes to be pro-choice might respond to the argument – that abortion violates the Great Commandment and the Great Commission – by saying, “I agree that Christians are supposed to... Read more
In my last post, I posed the question, “Is the Pro-Choice position consistent with the life and the teachings of Jesus Christ?” and provided some perspective regarding why this is a central question for all Christians to consider. There are 4 key follow-up questions to address to rightly and Biblically answer this question. The first is “How does support for abortion fulfill the Great Commandment and the Great Commission?” Indeed, as Christians, we are called to live out these two... Read more
A few years ago, I had the honor to speak about the life issue at a church. At the end of the service, I stood outside of the sanctuary to greet some of the congregants as they left. As I was speaking to one woman, I noticed a young man out of the corner of my eye. He had a sheepish look on his face, and I could tell that he was waiting for the others to leave to speak... Read more
In this post, my friend Andrew Wood poses a key question for every dad to consider. Which one are you? —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————– It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men… Frederick Douglass I recently came across this quote from Frederick Douglass and was amazed at the simple, yet profound truth these few words offer. Douglass wasn’t arguing for a culture or practice that chooses to not repair ‘broken’ men. Instead, he was pointing out the importance of... Read more
Good Fathers Reach Out to the Fatherless God truly cares about the fatherless. Depending on which Biblical translation you read, the word “fatherless” is mentioned over 40 times. In fact, in Psalms 68:5, God is described as the “father to the fatherless.” Moreover, Deuteronomy 10:18 says that God “defends the cause of the fatherless.” Therefore, it certainly stands to reason that if God, the ultimate Good Father whom every dad should use as a model, cares so deeply about the... Read more
The year was 1976. I was sitting in high school history class at the all-boys Catholic high school I attended in Toledo, Ohio. On most days, I may have been daydreaming about playing football. But the lesson on this particular day was the Supreme Court’s Dred Scott decision. I was all ears. You see, I was the only black kid in the class, so you can imagine things got a little awkward… for me and for the teacher who was giving... Read more
Years ago, I read a Christianity Today article that featured an interview with pastor and author John Piper, giving his thoughts about the importance of reconciliation. This interview provided some excellent insights into one of the 6 things good dads do. At the end of the interview, he talked about how his son walked away from the Christian faith at 19-years-old. He said: “I was pursuing him constantly…emailing every day almost, taking him to lunch every time he came back... Read more
Number 4 – Good Dads are Spiritually Involved Recently, I was reading about the increase in the number of people who want to climb Mount Everest. Apparently, this has become a very big business as thrill-seekers, young and old, experienced and novice, covet the opportunity to put their bodies and minds to the ultimate test. After all, Mount Everest, which is located in the Himalayas on the border between China and Nepal, is the earth’s highest mountain with its peak... Read more
Number 3 – Good Dads are Emotionally Available Be honest, when you think of the word “nurture” in the context of parenting, who comes to mind? If you are like most people the answer is “mom.” That’s understandable because the origin of the word nurture is “to feed or provide nourishment,” which, of course, brings to mind the image of a mother breastfeeding her newborn. Also, most of the time when people talk about nurturing it’s in the... Read more
Number 2 – Good Dads Are Physically Present Most fathers that I speak with understand that they need to financially provide for their children. Providing is such a well-understood aspect of fathering that often dads are just referred to as a “provider.” In fact, I often tell people that the only way that the government tends to think about dads is in this way. Alas, while there are a plethora of programs for women focused on maternal health and child... Read more
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