A New Direction

I have been praying for months now asking God what direction to take Legacy Dad and finally I have an answer. 

I am one man and to think that my struggles, knowledge and experience can relate to all situations is pretty arrogant. There are many fathers with similar situations, struggles and solutions as me and I have decided that I would like to make Legacy Dad a repository for all this knowledge and struggle.    

So in the future, there will be multiple authors sharing on Legacy Dad.  All of us are at different stages in our lives, walks with Christ and in parenting.  We all have different strengths and weaknesses which will lead to a fuller, richer environment here at Legacy Dad.

In the future, I hope to move Legacy Dad to a fully functioning portal where dads can come for advice, support and most of all for a blueprint of how to successful (and not successful) parent using biblical principles and morals. 

Get ready, it's going to get exciting around here.

Men

Changing History

Sometimes I wonder if blogging on something you love and believe in is really worth it? 

There are better ways to spend a few hours per week, especially when your time is limited.

However, this weekend, my daughter and a quote changed my mine on this subject.  My daughter was reading a book on Rosa Parks this weekend and I was: Parks

1. Intrigued that my 8 year old knew who Rosa Parks was.
2. Fascinated that with Pokemon, Hanna Montana and Camp Rock that my daughter was reading a history book.
3. Moved by what she said. (Although not at first) 

I asked her why she chose that specific book and she said "I am very interested in history dad and interested in the people who changed history." 

This comment did not have a profound effect until later in the weekend when I heard a comment in a documentary on the American Indian Movement.  Professor Ed Castillo made a comment that went something like this.

Aimlogo_2"History is made by those people who stand up and make some noise not by the people who are quiet and just go about their day to day lives."

History is made by those willing to speak, those willing to rebel and by those willing to believe in their dreams. 

All the great leaders and people in history believed in something, believed in change, believed they could make a difference.  Mlk_2

Whether good or bad. Those who stand up and speak up will be heard and those who remain quiet simply fade into the background.

The only choice we have then is whether to speak or remain silent?   

I choose to speak.

Do You Swing For The Fences With Your Family?

I tell you what, it is easy to get lost in it all.

Imagine trying to cram a Bachelors degree in Psychology into 6 months!  Spending 6-8 hours per day going to class.  Your mind and emotions simply turn off around 4:00PM, but you still have a good 6-7 hours of work and family time left in the day.

Then coming home with 2-3 hours of homework and clinical trials to do also. 

Now imagine doing all this while still trying to be a Legacy Dad, spending time with your wife and kids and being a strong Christian? 

This is my life right now and it's not fun. Ruth

Lately I have been really negative and my family has been suffering.  This course was one of those "it sounded good at the time" kinda things.   You may have noticed my postings on Legacy Dad have really fallen off and most contain little substance, for this I apologize.   

However, I don't share this with you to have a pity party for myself but to share with you my recent breakthrough. In times like this, we need to draw closer to God and surround our lives with his word. 

Recently, I found this great sermon called "Swing For The Fences." 

It tells us 3 things: 

1. Get Committed - To our faith, our family and our lives
2. Get Coaching - A mentor who kicks you in the pants and makes you drive yourself.
3. Stay Confident - You miss 100% of the shots you don't take. 

When you get some time this week, take 20 minutes and watch this sermon, it will give you a new perspective and give you that kick in the pants you need. It does for me.

Watch it here: http://www.legacydad.com/sermons/S4TF.mp4

http://www.legacydad.com/s/sermons/S4TF.mp4

Freedom

Freedom. 

The final cry of William Wallace in Braveheart.
A song by Rage Against the Machine about an injustice to a Native American.

What every boy needs to find his passions and develop his soul.

TreeboyWhen I reflect on my youth, I often remember the days spent running wild through the neighborhood with my friends. We would leave at 9:00AM and not return sometimes until before supper. These days, you would have a specialist at your door if you left your kids unattended for this long. But, in the 80's, this was the SOP. 

We spent our days exploring the world, having makeshift gun battles with our rivals "The Green Fort" and climbing trees while living dangerously.

These days, I don't see many kids being allowed the freedom to roam and explore.  Even in their own neighborhood, parents are always right behind them, never letting them do anything too dangerous. 

Then there is the ultra extreme parents, who keep their kids locked inside.  They can never jump on the trampoline, never ride their bike off a ramp and aren't allowed out of their yard if they do come out. 

I understand that these parents are well meaning and are probably thinking of their children's safety but what message are they sending to their children? 

You can't be trusted
The world is dangerous
Don't take risks

I often site the research done by Dr. Thomas Stanley on the countries most financially productive people, one of the top 5 traits of these people is risk taking.

Call me crazy but I believe that kids, especially boys, need to be allowed the freedom to run and explore once they hit around the age of 8-9. They need to climb trees, hunt "jaguars" in the field, and explore the boundaries beyond the local block. 

However, this is not the 80's and we do keep an "electronic leash" on our kids. We give them a small 2 way radio, that way Mom and Dad can call and check on them at any time.Mudkids

Allowing my children the freedom to explore and play unsupervised creates a field test in the real world of Legacy Dad.  As I have said in the past, I not only want my kids to display great character traits when I am present, more so, I want them to display great character traits when I am not present.  This is crucial because soon in life, I will not be there and then it is them and the world and they will make the choice.

At least if they make a poor decision now, they can always run home and I will hear about it.

I encourage my kids to overcome their fears, push the boundaries a little and take a few risks.  They are young, they will make mistakes and sometimes they may get some bumps and bruises. But, I would rather deal with a skinned up knee or a bloody nose now than having to deal with a wounded heart later in life or a 20 something that is out of control because it is the first time mom and dad let the reigns go.

Just some thoughts?

      

A Time To Pray

Do you believe in the power if prayer?  You should.

A University of California - San Fransisco Study showed in a double blind test that patients who were prayed for healed faster than those who were not prayed for.

PrayerIn the past few years, I have really witnessed the power of prayer in my life.  I believe it is because I have matured as a Christian and learned how to pray. 

When I was younger I would pray in times of need or despair.  We have all done this. 

"God, please help me get this promotion and I will be your faithful servant."
"God, please heal so and so and I will devote my life to you."

With maturity as a Christian, I have now learned to ask God to work through me to expand and show me what his will is for my life.  I ask God for him to reveal his plans to me rather than trying to ask God to make my plans become reality.

Recently I heard of some great questions to ask in prayer to help this process.

1. God, is there someone who needs to be loved, cared for or listened to?

2. God, Is there something in my life that needs to change?

3. God, how do you see me?

4. God, how much do you love me?

5. God, is there something that you want me the share?

These questions are great to add to our daily prayers and devotions and the magic thing is that when we ask questions of God, he usually answers in some way.  Whether through an act, another person, or a feeling deep inside of us.

The really question is when we ask God for something, do we listen to his response?

For more on this topic, listen to this weeks message on prayer.
 

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