Fathers

A friend forwarded me an article from The National Post yesterday. In her article, “The Male Crisis That’s Ruining Our Boys And No One Cares about,” Barbara Kay provides a social commentary on fatherlessness in today’s culture. While the content of this article may not surprise us, it’s fitting for us to contemplate on the importance of fathers as we celebrate Father’s Day this weekend. Kay states, “As women’s roles expand, society’s need for men in their traditional roles as protector, provider, and parent is shrinking. As men absorb society’s indifference or outright hostility to them, they feel increasing loss of ‘mission.’” Women have increased in their influence on family and society in the Western world over the last several decades (which is a great thing). However, Kay argues that the unintended negative impact this had on many families is that men have lost their mission. As our world continues to grow in honouring women with fairness, we also need to work on helping fathers understand their important role in the family. God created men and women to work together in partnership to steward the family in which they live. If mothers are carrying their load, and fathers are forgetting their mission, the children pay a hefty price for that. As followers of Christ, we all have been given a mission to bring God’s rule and reign in this world; we are missionaries bringing people into relationship with God wherever we go, and the primary mission field is our home. Proverbs teaches us to “Train up a child in the way he should go” (22:6a). As we celebrate Father’s Day this weekend, let’s remember the unique opportunity that God has given fathers to train our children to love God and glorify Him. Furthermore, let’s humbly pray that God would raise up fathers and equip them so that they may be missionaries in their homes.