The Power of a Father

The phrase “power of the father” might stir up less-than-desirable reactions from some. Power is a word that can be used for good or evil. But just because some have and will abuse the force behind the word, there’s no need to write it off. God’s Word clearly indicates that men — fathers — bring power to the parenting relationship. The woman brings life; the father brings strength. There will be days when a mother brings strength to things and there will be days when a man brings life. But the abiding pattern, the divine design, gives power to the father.

A father’s presence means something to a child. The permission a father gives differs from that a mother offers. It has been said “It’s not nice to point,” but a father had better set nice aside from time to time and point out a few things along the way. If he doesn’t, then who will?

Involved Dads Have A Direct Impact On Their Children’s Future Involved fatherhood is linked to better outcomes on nearly every measure of a child’s well-being. Even from birth, children who have an involved father are more likely to be emotionally secure, be confident to explore their surroundings, have higher cognitive development, have higher educational achievement, have higher self-esteem, and, as they grow older, have better social connections and pro-social behavior.

Children who grow up with involved fathers are:

• 39% more likely to earn mostly A’s in school

• 45% less likely to repeat a grade

• 60% less likely to be suspended or expelled from school

• twice as likely to go to college and find stable employment after high school

• 75% less likely to have a teen birth

• 80% less likely to spend time in jail.

♥ Stacy’s Childhood

I was raised in a Christian home in the hills of southwestern Wisconsin. My mother was very nurturing/caring, and my father was the strict disciplinarian.

I’ve always been a mamma's girl, but through childhood I gained a deeper respect for my father. He taught me that if I did something bad that there was a consequence for it.

Parents always say that kids like to “test their parents’ limits” and I believe that is entirely true. We test our parents to see what our limits are. Unfortunately, most kids tend to test the limits of how “bad” they can be more often than testing how “good” they can be. Regardless, we are still just trying to get a grasp on what’s right and wrong in this world so we can live successfully in it.

Now kids don’t realize that they’re doing this as they are staring you right in the eye as you tell them not to throw their food on the floor, but their brains are crying out for instruction and leadership. The yearning for wisdom and knowledge is something we all have from the day we are created in our mother’s womb.

From my experience, I received the clearest answers to what’s right and what’s wrong from my father. When he told me “no,” I didn’t have a doubt in my mind that he meant it. When he smiled and applauded me, I was elated and was overwhelmed with joy. Affirmation from my father was far more satisfying than when my mother applauded me because smiles and affirmation from my father were very rare, therefore I valued them more.

Now, don’t think that I’m trying to devalue mothers because I think we all know a mother’s worth goes far beyond words. I couldn’t imagine a life without all her kisses, hugs, and sweet gestures. Just the thought of not having my mom brings tears to my eyes. I simply think that we all need to give our dads more credit than society and Hollywood likes to project. They are a HUGE reason why we can live successful, happy, and healthy lives.

I’m personally ecstatic that I had a dad that cared so much about me to lay a great foundation to what’s right and wrong, good and bad, and worth pursuing and not worth pursuing. I give him more credit than anyone as to why I am where I am now.

- Stacy Peters

♥ Michelle’s Dad

My Dad is the strong silent type. He’s not a man of many words, but when he speaks, I listen. I really respect him for the all hard work he put in over the years to make a wonderful life for my mother, and my siblings and me.

I miss spending time with my parents since they moved to Arizona 23 years ago. Once a year, they usually travel back to the Midwest to visit me and my family. They like to get out of Arizona come the hot summer months.

My dad grew up on a farm in North Dakota. He was one of six children from German immigrant parents. He worked the family farm until joining the Army ROTC program and going off to college at NDSU. He married his high school sweetheart, my mother, right after college and they moved to Richmond, Virginia for his first job with the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA). He worked for that agency his entire career. Who does that anymore?

We did move several times throughout his career from Alaska, to Illinois, to New Jersey and to Kansas. No matter where we lived, every summer vacation was going back to North Dakota to visit family still living there. My fondest memories are those family vacations seeing my Dad unwind, and spend time with family, visiting, picnicking or fishing.

Since my dad retired as an electrical engineer, he’s been able to pursue several of his hobbies and passions. He’s a woodworking craftsman and he comes up with his own designs for gun vices, cutting boards and even furniture. He’s a collector too, always ready to hit estate sales for those items on his list. (I take after him with the love of old things!) His golf days are winding down, but he was an avid golfer the last 22 years. Now he’s a gym rat, still getting his exercise in at nearly age 82.

Some lessons that I’ve learned from my father are to work hard, to strive for consistency in your career, that family matters and that love lasts too. My folks will have been together 59 years this August!

- Michelle Boehmke

♥ Amber’s Dad

My father has been one of the biggest supporters in my life. Growing up, he was so patient and understanding with us kids. I remember him working a lot of overtime but still making time for us kids. We would play a lot of one-on-one basketball and play catch in the yard. Looking back, I am sure he would have loved to sit down and relax when he got home but he chose to spend time and make memories with us. I will forever be grateful for that!

During high school, he was at every sporting event. I felt so lucky to be able to look up in the stands and see my family. No matter where the event was, he was always there. Even to this day he is always there for me, whether I have a bad day or just need to vent.

When my husband and I told my family that we were expecting their first granddaughter, I think he was more excited than we were. And my husband and I were extremely ecstatic. The smile that he has on his face when he is with his grandchildren brings so much happiness to me. The way my children adore him doesn’t surprise me much though considering how he was such an amazing dad to my siblings and I. Even today, he’s exceeding his fatherly reputation by becoming an even better “papa” to my children.

- Amber Foley

♥ Joshua’s Dad

What Makes A Dad? A good dad shows agape/unconditional love but is firm about discipline when we fail.

A great dad teaches us everything he knows and demands more of us then we do of ourselves. The most value a dad can give is to simply spend time with his children. The best thing a dad can do for his children is to love their mother.

In reality, whether we believe there is a God above or not, our dads give us an understanding of who God is.

Thank you, dad, for being a great example in life and love and how you loved our mother.

- Joshua Dudgeon