Tag Archives: raising kids

Children and Violence in the News

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…) Books are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.patlambchristianauthorcom

Train up a child…

 Children and Violence in the News

What do we tell our children about all the violence that is happening in our world?  Can we shield them from it?  Should we just ignore it?

Since the beginning of time, there has been a struggle between good and evil.  Children need to be told that God wants good for everyone.  Satan is the author of evil.  All people have to choose which they will follow.  No choice means that people just do what they feel like doing and that is usually bad.  It is the condition of the heart that determines our actions.  No law can make people be good on the inside.  Love cannot be legislated.  We hope our children will choose good, but as parents, we must teach them what is good and what is bad.

It is impossible to completely shield children from all bad news.  We may succeed in keeping part of it away from them, but as they grow older, they will hear more and more.  It takes wisdom to know the amount of information to give children.  Some children are able to handle more than others at certain ages.  The parent is in the best position to know what a child can process.  It is better to help a child with understanding rather than just leave it for the child to have to face alone in the future.  To ignore the bad news completely leaves a child wondering and often confused.

There is no doubt that our children have a great challenge in their future.  We need to do all we can to prepare them.  Nothing is better to prepare them than to give them a foundation of Scripture.  Parents can never go wrong in helping children memorize Scripture.  Taking them to church can go a long way in giving support for spiritual development.  Listening to their concerns and answering to the best of our ability is also important.  It is okay to say, “I don’t know.  Maybe we can figure it out together.”  

It is natural for children to ask why God lets bad people hurt others.  The answer is that God can do everything but one thing.  He created us so that we have the right to choose.  He cannot choose for us.  If He could, we would be like puppets.  He wants us to choose the good and not the bad.  He sees everything and it makes Him sad when people choose wrongly.  He gave us the Bible to tell us how to choose the right way.  He wants us to choose to love Him, not be forced to love Him.  He wants us to choose to love others.  If others were forced to love us, it would not seem like real love.  It is the same with God.  It is important to have a choice and to choose wisely.  

Helping Children with Reading Homework

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…) Books are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.patlambchristianauthor.com

Train up a child…

Helping Children with Reading Homework

         Many parents shy away from helping their children with homework.  Often, this is because they are afraid they will not do it the way the teacher wants, or perhaps they feel inadequate.  There are six basic subject areas for which children may receive homework. They are reading, math, language, social studies, writing, and science.  In this column, I would like to make comments about helping children with reading.

         It is helpful to understand how reading is taught in schools today.  In the past there were arguments about whether sight reading or phonetic reading was best.  Actually, both are used.  There are certain words that children should simply memorize and learn by sight.  A good basis of phonics is absolutely necessary for a child to be able to decode words on his/her own.

         One of the best ways to help a child with sight words is to use flash cards.  Teachers can give parents a list of words that children should know by sight.  Children can make their own flash cards or flash cards may be purchased.  The advantage for a child to make the cards is that the child learns about spelling and writing at the same time as the words are learned. The advantage of purchasing the cards is that the print is similar to what the child sees on the pages in books.  Either or both are helpful.

         If a parent feels inadequate to teach phonics, that parent can ask the child to teach the parent. The child learns the sounds at school and usually knows them but simply needs review and practice for reinforcement.  Sometimes a parent may need to put a finger over part of a word to help the child break the word down.  Much of reading depends on the vision of a child…both the physical vision and the way the child sees the word in his/her mind.  By covering part of a word, the child can see parts of the word in the mind rather than just seeing a bunch of letters of the alphabet.

         The best thing any parent can do to help with a child’s reading is simply have that child read, read, read.  Older children can read stories to younger children or to the parents.  The children need to be familiar with the local library and have enjoyable books on hand to read at all times.  Reading at home should generally be easy reading. If a child does not know five words to a page, that book is too difficult for the child.  Reading easy books develops a feeling of self-satisfaction.  The child becomes more fluent and develops speed.  Usually, it is best to leave the difficult books for the school to handle.  Encouraging a child to read enjoyable and easy books develops a good foundation for reading in years to come.  If reading is always difficult, the child will shy away from it.

         Parents should see that books are available for children all the time.  Books should be in the car, so that when a child has to wait for a parent somewhere, the child can be reading.  Children can help make and read grocery lists.  They can read directions on packages to mom or dad when meals are being prepared.  Parents can find many opportunities to help children with reading and need not hesitate to do so.

How to Talk so Kids can Learn

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…) Books are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, patlambchristianauthor.com

Train up a child…

How to Talk so Kids Can Learn

         People do not like to be yelled at!  Children are people, too.  Children do not like to be yelled at!

         The way we talk to children greatly affects their learning.  Our tone and volume of voice is very important as we relate to the little ones.  We need to take the time, whenever possible, to explain and reason with children.  

         I have observed, over the years, that many parents constantly bark orders to children, often so rapidly that the children do not have time to mentally process one order before being given another. When this happens, children become resentful, confused, embarrassed, and often give up trying to obey. They may pout or act out in frustration.  They hurt inside because they feel that the one yelling at them does not love them.  It becomes even more confusing when, after barking orders to the children, a few minutes later that same parent may say, “I love you”.  This scenario gives an untrue example of love.  Love is patient. On the other hand, if we slow down, take time to let the child process instructions, and explain where needed, the child calms down, is more likely to obey, and senses love as shown through patience.  Sometimes a parent will get better results to simply go to the child, put an arm around that child, and whisper instructions slowly.

         Children can often understand more than we give them credit for if we take the time to give the explanations in words they understand.  We forget that they do not have the same vocabulary that we have.  They increase their vocabulary as we explain why we expect them to do certain things.  When they have the understanding, they are more apt to act appropriately on their own when parents are not around.  Many believe that if they just get their children in the habit of doing certain things that they will grow up and maintain those habits.  Habits only go so far.  Understanding of reasons for acting appropriately will extend the correct behavior.  There comes a time in a child’s life when that child begins to question what parents have told them.  If they have the basic understanding of the “whys”, they are more apt to stick with what they have been taught.

         The use of questions instead of statements is so very important in helping children reason out the “whys” of behavior.  Telling is not teaching!  When we ask questions, a child is forced to think. Following are some examples of common questions that can be asked in various situations:

  1. How would Johnny feel if you said that?
  2. If you did that, what would the children around you think?
  3. What could you say to make Suzie feel better?
  4. What will your teacher think if you do that?
  5. Are you sure that is the right thing to do?

These are just general questions to help a child think through his/her actions before deciding.  They also help to develop empathy and teach decision-making.

         Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish wrote a book titled, How to Talk so Kids Can Learn.  I highly recommend it. Although I do not agree with everything in the book, it certainly helps us rethink how we talk to children.

Why Some Kids “Act Out”

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…) Books are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.patlambchristianauthor.com

Train up a child…

Why Some Kids “Act Out”

         Little tries the patience of adults more than having a child misbehave by throwing a tantrum or acting in unacceptable ways.  Often, the tendency is to treat the symptom of behavior rather than looking deeper to decide why the child is acting as he/she is and treating the reason for the behavior. There are many reasons a child misbehaves.  One reason children do so is that they simply haven’t been taught acceptable behavior.  Other children have found through experience that their actions get them what they want.  Still other children become frustrated about their present circumstances and act out because they don’t know another way to deal with the situation.

         It seems that some parents think that children will raise themselves.  They neglect teaching their children proper behavior and simply leave them to their own way of thinking about things.  These children are almost like little wild animals that have never been tamed.  They make decisions according to base wants for the moment with little regard for consequences of behavior.  If they feel like running, they run.  If they feel like shouting, they shout.  If they feel like tearing up something, they tear it up.  Actions are determined by feelings at the moment.  In such cases, teachers or others working with these children must teach them how to act along with the “whys” of correct behavior. Often, these children have been left so long that they will never catch up with where they should be in learning proper behavior.  In many cases, the parents themselves don’t know how to act acceptably even if they should decide to teach their children.

         Some children act out because they have experienced in the past that doing so will get them what they want.  These are the children whose parents give in to temper tantrums just to get the child to be quiet.  It is human nature to use tactics that work for our survival. Children learn that this is one tactic that works, so it is repeated.  A common example of this child is the one who throws a tantrum in a store while shopping to get something desired.  The parent, rather than tolerate the embarrassment, will get the item for the child.  The next time the child wants something, that child will throw another temper tantrum.  Parents need to stop giving in to the tantrums to change this child and instead respond only to positive behavior.

         Sometimes children find themselves in situations that they can’t handle. This could be a child who normally acts very nice, but suddenly there may be an outburst.  Children have not yet learned the “niceties” of talk to say no to something beyond their ability. In addition, as a child, they are taught to obey and not say no.  Parents and teachers sometimes “pigeonhole” a child into a situation that is scary or beyond the child’s competence.  In such cases, the child knows nothing better than to become frustrated and “lash out” at those around.  Not all children are of the nature to sit still for long periods of time in school.  Some children are designed to be active children and not the nice and quiet children we may want.  God designs us uniquely and that design does not always fit into the expectations of a parent or teacher. In such cases, parents and teachers need to assure the child that he/she is not expected to do something that the child can’t do. A different assignment may need to be given at the level of ability.

         There is no substitute for time spent with a child to learn what the child is thinking and feeling.  This knowledge helps us understand the child’s behavior and with many prayers for wisdom, parents and teachers can then address that behavior in a loving way.  

Children Learn in Different Ways

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…) Books are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or www.patlambchristianauthor.com

Train up a child…

Children Learn in Different Ways

         Studies show that we tend to raise our children the way we were raised in spite of any training in child-rearing classes we may have received along the way.  Without realizing it, we tend to think that our children will learn the same way we learned without taking into account the differences in inherited traits and personalities.  We can be much more effective in parenting (and grandparenting) if we can understand the differences in the way children learn.

         Some children tend to learn better by hearing information while others learn better by seeing or doing.  Educators classify children as auditory, visual, or kinesthetic learners.  Actually, all children learn in each of these ways, but most are dominant in one or two of the ways.

         Auditory learners learn best by having a story read to them rather than reading it for themselves.  They like to have music going most of the time and would rather have someone tell them what to do than read instructions for themselves.  They are often musically inclined and can learn better when things are set to music. Auditory learners might learn multiplication tables more easily if they are set to music.  In my opinion, many children have not developed listening skills and do not fall into this category.  

         Visual learners learn better with charts and graphs or demonstrations.  They need to see how a word looks to decide if it is spelled right, and they will probably learn their spelling words by writing them over and over rather than just saying them over and over. They will be the individuals who take a lot of notes when they are in high school or college.  They need to be shown how to do things rather than just being told.  Charts for daily chores work well for these children.  They probably won’t just take a person’s word for something.  They will probably want to see for themselves whether something is right.  

         Kinesthetic learners like to use their bodies and do active things.  They are usually the children involved in sports.  They learn best by doing projects. They like doing play-doh projects when they are young.  When they are older, they are the ones who like the social studies and science projects that involve making things.  An example of using a kinesthetic method to teach in school might be to have students stand and turn a certain number of degrees right or left to learn about degrees in a circle.  At home, boys will love to do fix-it projects with dad.  Girls will like cooking or other projects involving action.

         Observance of children will give clues as to how they best learn.  When children constantly doodle and draw pictures, you can know they are the visual learners.  The very active children are usually the kinesthetic learners and it is important to keep them busy with projects.  Quiet children may be the auditory learners as they are listening for sounds in nature or listening to others.  No two children are the same.  Good parents and teachers will learn to observe the differences and capitalize on the way that children learn best.

Dads Have Trying Times

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book: Love is…) Books are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and www.patlambchristianauthor.com

Train up a child…

Dads have Trying Times

         Dads who are serious about raising good children will have trials from “cradle to grave”.  Here is one example of a trial our youngest son, Charles, experienced on Mother’s Day.

         Trying to be a good dad, Charles had taken his seven-yr.-old son, Garrett, to buy a present for his mom.  On Mother’s Day, he and Garrett got up early and happily got the gift, took it out of the box, and put it on the porch.  It was a storage unit for the lawn chair cushions.  Mom would really like this!  Garrett excitedly called for his mom to come and see her surprise.

         Garrett’s mom, Kelly, was hurrying around as usual and didn’t want to spoil the occasion by waiting until she could check the younger brother,  23-month old Spencer.  “I couldn’t have been away from him more than ten minutes,” she said.  I didn’t want to spoil the moment, but I kept thinking, “It’s too quiet upstairs.”  She excused herself as quickly as possible and ran upstairs to check on Spencer.  Spencer, who had not been invited to the fun time, had created some fun of his own.  She found him sitting in the bathroom floor splashing in water and having a great time!

         Spencer had been flushing one thing after another down the toilet.  Water was everywhere!  It had even run down into the master bedroom closet and ruined the sheetrock on the walls!  The rest of the day was spent trying to snake out the water line and clean up the mess.  A Dixie cup was found, and a toothbrush was never found.  Finally, it was decided that the toilet would have to be replaced.  A trip was made to town to buy a new toilet.  The new toilet was installed and the sheetrock was removed from the closet walls.  

         I couldn’t resist asking Charles, “Did you get mad at him?”  I was relieved to hear the answer, “Naw.  He’s just too little to understand what he did.”  

         Charles had worked 72 hours the week before at his job.  He had looked forward to a pleasant weekend at home.  This event was certainly a trial of his love for family, and I am happy to say that he came through just fine! I suggested that he would probably have many more such trials before the boys become adults and he assured me that he knew this to be true.

         Although this trial seems bad enough, truth is that as the children grow older, the kinds of trials may change to be heart-rending trials, not just trials that require physical stamina. 

         Hats off to all the dads this Father’s Day, who are surviving or have survived trials of many sorts, because of their love for their children.  May they reflect the love of our Heavenly Father in their daily lives as they are constantly being observed.

Son’s prayer:  Dear God, Make me just like my daddy.

Dad’s prayer:  Dear God, Make me the man my son thinks I am.  

When Children Get Sick

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by Pat Lamb (Author of Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…) Books are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or www.patlambchristianauthor.com.

Train up a child…

When Children Get Sick

         When children get sick, as they inevitably do, we often ponder about how much to “baby” them or just how to care for them.  What mother has not sat by the side of a sick child and thought, “I’d rather it were me feeling that way than my child”?  It hurts us emotionally while at the same time it is hurting the child physically.

         Of course, we try to do all we can to prevent that sickness in the first place.  We encourage the children to wash their hands often, singing “Happy Birthday” while scrubbing with soap and warm water to make sure the hands are scrubbed long enough to get clean.  We do our best to make sure the child has plenty of fruit and vegetables in the diet to provide the vitamin C and other nutrients needed to fight the germs.  We try to see that the child is dressed properly for the cold weather, and we try to keep the child away from places where we know germs are present.  In spite of all our care, we often feel at least a little guilt when the child gets sick as we wonder if we did all we could have done to prevent the illness.

         There are actually some positive things that come from sickness.  One such positive learning is that children come to realize that they are vulnerable.  Many young people often feel as though they can do anything and nothing bad will ever happen.  Sickness teaches a child that we each need to be careful with how we care for ourselves. A time of sickness in the home can become a time of bonding between family members as all pitch in and help the sick one.  The sick child may learn to appreciate the love and care of others.  A third benefit is a possible development of sympathy and understanding of others when they become sick.  It seems that we can never truly appreciate the feelings of others until we, ourselves, have experienced what they are going through.  People who seldom get sick often are impatient with those who do get sick more often.

         How much care should be given to a sick child?  In my opinion, we need to take advantage of this time to “coddle” the child a bit.  There are, of course, occasions when this is not true.  If a child starts to take advantage of the extra attention, we need to back off.  When a child is truly sick, however, that child needs assurance of love and care.  We need a balance of not seeming overly concerned but, at the same time, children need to know that we wish the best for them. To this day, I can remember my mom’s hand on my forehead when, as a child, I would get sick and throw up.  I’m sure that hand did no physical good, but it showed that she cared.  Another memory is a time when my dad brought a pretty colored ear of corn from the field for me when I had tonsillitis.  

         Should a child be allowed to watch TV?  Yes, but only educational programs. Should a child do homework?  The child should do homework only if he/she is not feeling too badly.  I would not force it but would check occasionally to see if he/she feels like it, and then I would give assistance. Should a child be allowed to get up and run around?  Generally, we need to allow a child to do what that child feels like doing until the temperature has been normal for at least 24 hours.  Then the child probably needs to go back to school.  Sometimes, medicine can make a child feel better while he/she is getting worse.  This may be the case when medicine is given to treat symptoms only and the medicine does not treat the cause of the symptoms.  

         We probably will not do everything perfectly when our children get sick.  We simply try to give proper physical and emotional care to the best of our ability and pray that the Great Physician will do whatever else is needed.  

Children Need to Learn Personal Responsibility

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book. Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.patlambchristianauthor.com)

Train up a child…

Children Need to Learn Personal Responsibility

         “The government should buy each of us an electronic dictionary.”

         “They’re all a bunch of crooks!”

         “The President should__________.”

         “The only jobs there are are those old crappy jobs.” 

“The government doesn’t give us enough money to live on, 

The above are all true comments heard in GED class when I was teaching.  They clearly indicate a lack of understanding of how our government is supposed to be a government “of the people, by the people, and for the people”.  “We, the people,” not “They, the people” are responsible for what happens in our country.

         Children need to be taught at an early age to accept personal responsibility as citizens for self and others.  Without this teaching, people become like leeches, living off the lives of others.  

         Children need to see their parents go vote.  Children need to hear their parents talk civilly about the candidates and their policies.  Children need to understand that our founding fathers set up a government with checks and balances making the congressmen and congresswomen as responsible as the president for decisions that are made.

         I have found that very few of the students I have taught knew the three branches of the government: executive, legislative, and judicial.  They did not know that the Senate and House of Representatives make up Congress.  They did not know that there are two Senators from each state and that Representatives are elected according to population based on the census every ten years. Further, they did not know the meaning of checks and balances, a system set up by the founders of our country to make sure that no one branch of government has too much power.  Had they known about the system of checks and balances, they would have known that the president cannot be solely blamed for mistakes nor can he solely take credit for successes.  In fact, the president can do very little alone.  Understanding this fact would make more people take greater consideration in the Senators and Representatives they vote for.  

         Children need to be taught that all money coming from Washington, D.C., must first go there, and that taxpayers are the ones who send it there.  They need to be told that they have a responsibility to send money to Washington, D.C. and not just think of what they can get fromWashington, D.C.    In fact, right now other countries are helping fund our government, making us indebted to them.  Also, by the time our tax money goes to Washington and then comes back, it has dwindled a great deal due to the many expenses associated with counting, disbursement, etc.  It would be of more personal value to keep it home in the first place.  

         Unfortunately, many parents act as though they do not understand these facts.  If parents and grandparents do not understand, how can they teach the children?  Perhaps greater thought needs to be given before discussing our government in front of children. WE are the government.  We govern through the people we elect.  We have no right to say they are the government.  We need to write letters, attend meetings held by our voted-in officials, and encourage our elected officials to govern as it was originally intended.

         Let’s make sure our children understand the truth about our country.  If we start teaching our children about our government while they are young, perhaps they will know more when they grow up than one student I had who wrote in a paper about “President Busch”.  

Dad’s Dilemma

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book. Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.patlambchristianauthor.com)

Train up a child…

Dad’s Dilemma

         Dad has a dilemma as he attempts to be head of his home.  That dilemma is how to please mom and, at the same time, “bring home the bacon” and train the kids properly.

         I’m afraid that too many of us as mothers may be too critical of dad and his attempts to discipline and teach the children.  Often, we expect dad to see things just exactly as we see them and do just exactly as we would when they make an effort to direct the children.  If God had intended us both to think the same, he would have made us both the same.  Often dad wields a firmer hand than a mother would.  I believe that is the way it should be.  It seems to be the nature of mom to nurture and cuddle.  Too many times we want to jump in and rescue a child when dad knows that firmness is needed.  Dad doesn’t want to disappoint mom.  This puts him in a tough spot.

         One comedian in Branson joked that a woman’s brain has a four lane highway going from the left brain to the right brain and men have a narrow cow path going from one side of the brain to the other.  This makes women more able to multi-task where men are more apt to think of one thing at a time.  Generally, this is true. 

 Of course, there are exceptions to all of the research findings.  Some men can multi-task.  For those men who find multi-tasking difficult, it is really hard to come home from work and immediately switch to the role of being a dad.  I remember reading in the 50’s that the wife should wait until the husband has been home from work 20 minutes before she starts telling him about the day with the kids!  Times have certainly changed as now many women are also working outside the home.  However, a man may still find it more difficult to adjust quickly to a different set of tasks from what he faced at work.  Also, many jobs now require the person to be on call for 24 hours. In this case, it is especially difficult to switch the mind back and forth to concentrate on what the children need.

         Many dads hesitate to discipline the children for fear they are not doing it properly.  They want the children to like them, and may fear that they only see him when he is scolding them for something, and will hold it against him.  The truth is that even though children may resent discipline for a time, in the long run there will be more respect for parents when they show that they care enough to risk not being liked for the sake of a child.  As for not being sure of how to discipline and teach properly, dads need to avail themselves of books and other information available to help them learn. 

Dr. James Dobson has written many wonderful books that give insight into how children think and react.  Dads need to visit the school and meet the teachers and get involved with their children’s activities. Also, dad needs to make sure there is a time each week for the family to have devotions and an opportunity for each family member to express any concerns or ask questions. 

         We can all learn and do better when it comes to bringing up the children.  Mom needs to be more patient with dad and dad needs to make more effort to learn about children and communicate with the family.

A Lesson from a Dad

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by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come; Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book. Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.patlambchristianauthor.com )

Train up a child…

A Lesson from a Dad

       No matter how old we get, when Father’s Day comes, our thoughts naturally turn to our dads and what they mean to us.   My dad taught me a lesson that I would like to share with you.

         We had about 24 cows to milk most of the time on our little farm in Verona, MO.  I liked to tag along with my dad on summer evenings when he went down into the pasture to bring them up for milking.  On one hot summer evening, I was tagging along behind him watching the little puffs of dust come from under my bare feet on the dry, dusty cow path. Suddenly he stopped, squatted down, and pulled a blade of grass.

         My dad sat for a while looking at that blade of grass.  First he looked on the underneath side of it, and then he rolled it over and looked at the top of it.  I could tell that my dad was having deep, serious thoughts.

         “Patsy,” he said, “jest look at this blade of grass.  Look at all the little hairs on it.  Look at all the little lines going here and there on it.”  About that time, an airplane flew overhead.  My dad looked up at the sky and said, “You know, man can make an airplane and fly.  Why, someday, who knows, man may even be able to go to the moon and back, but don’t you ever forget that only God can make a blade of grass!”

         I haven’t forgotten that lesson. Sure enough, man has gone to the moon and back, and man has done much more. Man has even learned to clone animals and humans, but man will never be able to make a blade of grass.  

         Some of the best teaching parents can do comes at opportune moments when least expected.  Impromptu teaching of values can only come if a parent’s heart is right and the desire to teach is there.  Just as we walk every day and never give a thought to the grass we are treading upon, so do we often let day after day go by and never give a thought to the many opportunities for teaching children.

         The best planned lessons from the most educated of teachers may not be as effective as a lesson given from the heart of a dad.  Sure, mom has plenty of input, but there is something extra special when a dad puts his effort into working with his children.  A dad should think of the home as his piece of the world.  It is his to govern and support.  It is something he owns in partnership with mom.  Mom is his helper as he rules his “little country”. 

         Whether or not a dad wants this responsibility, it is his, and God will hold him accountable for how he conducts himself with this assignment.  In God’s sight, just because a man left a home, his responsibilities have not been erased. Bringing children into the world places the responsibility of rearing them squarely on the dads.  Nothing can take that away. 

         This Father’s Day, let us be grateful and express that gratefulness to our dads.  There are many fine dads who take their responsibilities very seriously and they deserve to be honored.  Oh, that there were more dads who did so!