In all of my Bible classes, we discuss my belief that God chose Joseph as carefully as Mary to be the earthly father of Jesus. Some kids think that Jesus would have been Jesus no matter what but the angel told Mary that she was highly favored and not some random Jewish teenage girl. This week, we began looking at the Parable of the Prodigal Son where the father is clearly portrayed as God. As part of the assignment, the students wrote an in-class paper describing what they believe makes a good father. Here are some of their thoughts, boys in blue and girls in purple. We will do this for several days and all are used by permission. Tonight's entries are from a variety of grade levels.
A good father would be loving, intelligent and have self-control. A loving father would be a teacher and willing to give up something that is immoral. A father would be adept in his teaching upon God and virtue. He will be able to control himself in any disciplinary circumstances. More importantly, a good father would be joyful in everything that he does. My father is not the perfect one; he is very intelligent but shows it passively. The same for love. He doesn’t like to show his love in public. Sometimes I feel as if he thinks he doesn’t have a family anymore.
-F
A good father must have three key characteristics. These characteristics are that he must not be stubborn, must be merciful, and most importantly, the father must be Christian. The first characteristic a good father has is the ability to be open-minded. Stubborn people are never fun to cope with and they can frustrate their children, causing them not to listen to their parents. Parents must listen to reason, not just dismiss their child without a second glance. However, a parent must know when to be firm and when to be open-minded. The second trait a good father must have is mercy. Just as God is merciful, a good father must be as well. If a father punishes harshly for the slightest thing, his child will never listen to him. The third trait a good father must have, over everything, is a strong Christian faith. Without a Christian faith, a father can’t teach his child the way to go. Thus, the child will grow up blind. Also, if the father is Christian, he will set a better example for his child since he will be following God. Without these key qualities, a child will not be able to learn from their father. And if the child learns from the father’s ways, he/she will pass these traits through his children, and they will keep passing them down.
-A
I would say a good father is a man who loves and cares for his children. If he shows his love for his child, they know that he cares. A man who fathers a child should also love the child no matter what the situation is. It shows the child a good example. He is someone who will go different events and check on his child. A father has to love and provide for the child for it to feel like he is a father. As long as he does what he can for his children, he is a good father. A good father trues to teach his children all he knows because it's the right thing to do.
-M
A good father is one who always protects his family. A good father is one who is willing to do anything for his wife and children. A good father is always involved in his childrens' lives and is supportive of their dreams and goals. A good father loves his wife with all of his heart. A good father makes stupid jokes to try to make you laugh when you have a bad day. A good father pushes his children to be the best they can be in all that they do. A good father loves Jesus. A good father wakes up early to make breakfast. The most important thing a father does is tell his wife and children he loves them everyday and proves he would do anything for them.
-M
A good father is a father who has his priorities straight and knows his responsibilities. A good father realizes that he is the man of the house and is depended on. He does all he can to support his family. To his family, a good father is firm and strict, yet he loves them unconditionally. A good father protects his family and takes the lead. He sets good examples and teaches life lessons. A good father forgives. But most importantly, a good father tries his best to be like God and teaches his children to do the same.
-B
A good father is one who cares about you. He teaches you the right tools to be successful in life. Your father is supposed to be hard on you at times and nice to you at times. A good father also does the work around the house, prays for the family, cooks the food sometimes, and doesn’t let the wife do all of the work. Getting over things is also a good thing. The main thing about being a good father is providing- that is what a wife is looking for.
-A
Applicable quote of the day:
“I believe that what we become depends on what our fathers teach us at odd moments, when they aren't trying to teach us. We are formed by little scraps of wisdom.”
― Umberto Eco, Foucault's Pendulum
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
www.hawleybooks.com
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
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