It is not enough to know "What is a Good Father" the kind of father God wants you to be.
Proverbs 22: 6 "Train the child in his way, and when he is old he will not depart from it"
"What a good father". This is good to preach, but today, I want to go a little further. I want to deal with "How to be a good father". It is not enough to know the characteristics of a good father ... we have to see what we have to do to be a good father.

LOVE HIS WIFE

Your Relationships, Friendship, Parenting, Commitment, Relationships Your children see how you treat your mother. They look ... and they are learning and forming your concept of your marriage. You are creating a pattern, a model for marriage for your children.

If they see you disrespect your wife ... your children will take that to your marriage.

If you verbally or mentally or physically abuse your wife ... your daughter will expect the same in her marriage.

If you treat your mother as if she is not worth much ... if you are degrading the home, family and marriage ... your children will take the same to their future homes, families and marriages.

If they clearly see you show love and respect to your mother ... your child will learn to be a good husband and father.

If you honor your wife ... your daughter will never be satisfied with a man who dishonors her.

If you cherish your mother as a valuable part not only in your life, but also for the lives of your children ... they will carry that model with them for the rest of their lives.

Ephesians 5:28 - "So also husbands must love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife, loves himself. "

DO NOT WAIT FOR PERFECT CHILDREN

Just like there are no perfect parents ... there are no perfect children either ... AMEN?

Parents, do not expect your children to be perfect. Do not expect your children to meet all your expectations ... to fulfill all their goals for them ... to be what you want them to be.

Too many parents try to live their own lives through their children. They want their children to be the stars of football that they themselves could never be. They want their daughters to marry and achieve success and the triumph they never achieved.

Each child is different ... they are not a clone of you (Thank God!). It's natural for a child to make mistakes ... spill his milk ... accidentally break things ... sometimes get poorly on school tests ... get angry ...

They are not perfect ... like you when I was a kid! Accept their children for what they are ... it does not matter if they are clumsy or athletic ... clueless or intelligent ... timid or a talkative ... ridiculous or sophisticated ...

Instead of constantly criticizing their imperfections, recognize who they are ... and love them. They are not perfect ... they will never be perfect ... do not expect them to be perfect.

Col. 3:21 - "Fathers, do not exasperate your children, lest they become discouraged."

ENJOY YOUR CHILDREN

Psalm 127: 3 - "Behold, the children are the heritage of the Lord; Thing of esteem the fruit of the belly. "

Children have been given to us to enjoy ... not to be a burden ... not to avoid them ... not to ignore them ... but to enjoy them! In order to enjoy them, you have to be with them ... have fun with them ... share your life with them.

Nothing of what: " The quality of time is more important than the amount of time "the amount of time you spend with them tells you how important they are to you ... it does not have to be something at the last minute ... or an inconvenience ... or an interruption in your busy schedule . Not only give them the leftovers.

Enjoy being a parent ... and make sure that they also enjoy having you as their father. Spend some time on the ground with them, giving them horseback riding ... take them to places of fun, doing fun things ... laugh ... play ... give them some memories that dad was a fun person to be with.

LISTEN TO YOUR CHILDREN

Give them your full attention ... not with one eye on the TV and the other eye on them. When they have a problem ... when they are worried ... when they are sad ... when they are alone ... they do not need cartoons, or a video game, they need their best friend, Dad ... they need you!

Get involved with your children, and know what is happening in their daily lives. Listen to them ... even when they are not saying anything, they are always saying something. Be the kind of father they can come to and say whatever is in their minds ... without being criticized for it.

If you listen to them today that they are small and their problems too ... then they will also come to you when they are big and their problems are also bigger.

Proverbs 1: 5 - "The wise will hear, and knowledge will increase, and the wise will acquire counsel"

PROVEA FOR YOUR CHILDREN

1 Timothy 5: 8 - "If anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his house, has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever"

Even the lost provide for their families ... but ... you can not be a good father and not provide for your children.

I do not mean that you have to give them everything they want ... that's the worst thing you can do. We are living in a generation of children whose parents have stolen their children the blessing of wanting, working and waiting for material things. We have spoiled our children, giving them immediate satisfaction ... and they will continue this tradition by getting into debt for everything they want and accumulating huge debts on their credit cards.

Too many parents think that they can buy their children with things ... and thus not feel guilty for not being the parents they should be ... believing that they can buy their way out of Biblical fatherhood.

My father did not have much money when I was growing up ... we had to pump to get our water, we had to walk 30 meters to go to the latrine, and we took a bath in a washing tub in the kitchen with water heated in a stove fed by wood. I never went to a barbershop until after I got married. We did not have a phone until I was in high school.

Did my father provide for me? Of course he did! He gave me everything I needed, and he taught me the blessing of wanting, working and expecting material things. Providing for their children, giving them too much, is as bad as not providing for them, giving them very little.

TEACH YOUR CHILDREN

Ephesians 6: 4 - "And you, fathers, provoke not your children to wrath, but bring them up in the discipline and admonition of the Lord."

We must teach and train our children to respect authority in the home ... or they will not respect authority in school or in the world. We have to teach our children that there are limits ... rules and regulations ... a line that they should not cross.

Teach your children to respect authority. Earn your respect ... be consistent ... discipline them with love ... or they will never respect the authority of God in their lives

PRAY FOR YOURSELF

1 Chron. 16:11 - "Seek Yahweh and his power; Seek your face continuously. "

You do not have all the answers to your questions ... you can not solve all your problems. You do not have all the wisdom, love and patience to be the father you should be. Without God's help, you can never be the father God wants you to be.

PRAY FOR YOUR CHILDREN
Psalm 55:17 - "Late and tomorrow and at noon I will pray and cry, And he will hear my voice."

You can not be with your children all the time ... God can. He can not protect them wherever they go. .. God can. You can teach them the good of evil, but you can not be there when you approve ... God can.

Pray for your children! Raise them to God so that He will do for them what you can not do. As parents, we are not perfect and we make mistakes. If we had to do it all over again, we would do things differently. Maybe we have done the best we could ... we did what we thought was right ... we raised our children the best we knew.

BE A POSITIVE MODEL

Proverbs 22: 6 - "Train the child in his way, and when he is old he will not depart from it."

You are a role model for your children ... whether we like it or not ... good or bad ... they will, to one degree or another, model their lives on you. You have inherited some of your father's characteristics ... your children are inheriting some of theirs.

Whether you know it or not (think it or not), you are influencing the lives of your children and the children of your children.

PREPARE YOUR CHILDREN
Proverbs 23:24 - "Much shall the father of the righteous rejoice, and he that begets the wise shall rejoice with him."

You are preparing your children to go home ... PLEASE! Some days, they will take what they have learned from you, and they will begin to apply it in their real world. You are only about 18 years old to prepare them.

Preparing them for a life away from you is only part of the picture. If you have not spent your time preparing them for eternity, you have failed as a parent. God did not give his children just to prepare them as a doctor, a teacher, or a plumber. God gave birth to Christian parents in order to prepare them for the eternity they will take ... but you can choose to show them the way to heaven ... or ... you can choose to ignore their spiritual destiny. They have to decide for themselves the path they will take ... but you can have an influence from God for your choice.

Prepare them for eternity ... that have a divine influence on the path they will take for eternity.

** Make God a part of your adventure in fatherhood. **