Welcome To Legacy Dad

Welcome to Legacy Dad, this site is about striving to be the bestfather and spouse that a man can be. It's about being a rolemodel and setting the example in all areas of your life.

This site is not about winning blog awards or popularity contestsand I am not a writer with eloquent words and punchy buzz phrases.

Plain and Simple. It's about being accountable and standing out from the rest:

Being a great husband.

Being a strategic father.

Being a role model for your children, friends and co-workers.

Being disciplined and smart with your finances and creating abundance.

And living your life by a higher code of morals and values.

It's about designing a plan to attain self actualization and spiritual greatness.

These pillars are the bedrock to true character and do not change with society or the latest trends.The journey to become a Legacy Dad is not an easy one and each personprogresses at their own pace.  For this reason few will take thisjourney or go the distance.

Butfor the special 10% that commit to go the distance, you will look backon your life and know that no stone was left unturned, no "what-ifs"remain unchallenged and the rewards that come into the lives of yourfamily will forever change their existence and create a family legacy.

The Pillars of Legacy Dad:

A Strong and Loving Marriage

Grace Based Parenting

Esse Quam Videri Character Traits

Navigator Leadership

Spiritual Morals as a Compass

              Financial Security and Abundance          

I was in search of authentic manhood and men who "walked the walk"as well as a Christian parenting style that led my children to truegreatness. A style that created a close bond with my children, createda more dynamic and happy family, instilled Christian values and otherlife skills that my wife and I deemed important and prepared ourchildren in a number of certain areas for life.

I wanted my children to grow up to become mature and experienced in the following areas:

Spirituality – Faith
Morals and Values
Leadership
Marriage and Relationships
Finances and Investing

I was confused and I wanted a process, a map to follow to help thisstyle of parenting along. I wanted my children to have rights ofpassage, to learn “real world” values and to culminate in a LegacyCrossover, where my children were now congratulated on their progressand reassured they were ready for the world.

This led to my wise grandfatherand a treasure chest of knowledge and wisdom accumulated from decadesof experience and leaders. My grandfather begin to mentor and teach mebut soon into the journey, God took him home. I then received hisjournal and clues to the rest of the teachings.  As a tribute andcontinued study I started Legacy Dad to share this wisdom with otherfathers who also had these same questions.

The ultimate goal of Legacy Dad is to create this in our children:

Security in their Hearts

Significance in their lives

Strength for the future

The "Real" Essential Life Skills

Spiritual Morals as A Compass

I invite you to come along for the ride and learn from my successesand failures as well as learning from those who have walked before usand picking up great nuggets of wisdom to apply in all areas of yourlife.

I am by no means all knowing or an expert.  I am just a guy, ahusband and father, with the goal of attaining True Greatness andhaving some friends to come with me.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3nbjjPvkdE&w=425&h=350]

Grace Based Families

Grace Based Families

Much of the parenting of Christians today is based on fear—fearof the world and the deteriorating culture, fear of other parents, andfear of the opinions of the church. This in turn encourages parents tofocus on behavior and control of the child'senvironment rather than on the heart of their children.

Grace Based Parenting encourages parents to parent their children as God parents Hischildren—with grace. Grace Based Parenting urges us to raisestrong children and to move beyond outer problems and address the innerproblems of our children.

Legacy Podcasts

Grace Based Families

Theseare podcasts from various sources that teach and emulate the values andpillars of Legacy Dad. These podcasts are all property of the originalauthor but are free to the public.

You can click the link to play these or right click and save them to play on iTunes or your portable mp3 device.

reThinking Childrens Ministry

reThinking Children's Ministry

Is student ministry accomplishing what we think it is? Roughlytwo-thirds of students leave the church after graduation. Baptisms aredown. Student pastors are walking away from ministry at startlingrates. It s time to rethink student ministry.  Pastor Reggie Joiner talks about joining family and ministry in a whole new way. 

Legacy Podcasts

reThinking Children's Ministry

Theseare podcasts from various sources that teach and emulate the values andpillars of Legacy Dad. These podcasts are all property of the originalauthor but are free to the public.

You can click the link to play these or right click and save them to play on iTunes or your portable mp3 device.

Spencer Thompson’s My Life

http://blip.tv/play/gqwE_bQckqc1

Mega Church Vs. Little Church

I recently had a dilemma, we moved to a new state and at the time decided to attend a smaller church that was working on building its own facility.  The idea was to get involved and be able to serve and help the process along.  We liked the church, the people and my wife was helping in the children's ministry.Then, as usual, I had to leave for 90 days for work and upon my return I heard some comments that made my spiritual leader alarm go off.

First, my wife explained that the woman in charge of the children's ministry was "different." As I inquired, I learned that she had abruptly asked my wife to take over the children's ministry for the summer so she could have a break.  My wife agreed and prepared a lesson plan for the next Sunday...

Next Sunday.

My wife showed up and the woman was there to "oversee" her lesson.  My wife began teaching (See does have a B.S. in Education) and the woman immediately began interrupting the class and inquiring why my wife was doing things this way or that - in front of the kids.  This happened throughout the class and the woman kept stating "This isn't how I would have done it"   At the end of the class, the woman told my wife that she had taught the class all wrong, even though the kids enjoyed it.  The woman then explained that she just started taking some college classes in education insinuating that she was much more qualified to teach Sunday School than my wife.

First, my wife looks like she is 20 even though she is in her early 30's and often gets hit on by teenagers and asked to "babysit" by other mothers.

Second, my humble wife never told the woman that she has a teaching degree and has taught in many classrooms and has led a children's ministry before.  My wife simply rode it off as someone not wanting to let go of control but also decided, after a few more episodes, that she DID NOT want to work with this woman anymore.

Next, my kids were unenthusiastic about attending church.  When I inquired about this, I heard stories of the "boring children's ministry" and the "Mothers Day Incident."  When I asked what this was my wife told me a story of the 4th-6th graders having to sing a song called "I Love Mommy" to the tune of "You Are My Sunshine."

Apparently, my son and his friends pulled their hoodies over their heads so no one would see them during the performance. My son later told me the woman was treating them like preschoolers and that his 4th-6th grade class was being taught more at the 1-3 Grade level.

To this woman's defense, I have taught 4th-6th grade Sunday School before and you have to be VERY creative and find fun and exciting ways to keep the kids involved. Especially with more spiritually mature kids.  The old tried and true read a bible verse, teach a lesson and do some arts and crafts does not work.  You have to speak to their hearts, to their fears and to what is relevant in their lives at this age.  Also, a little craziness, games and singing loud praise and worship never hurts!

I had heard enough and quickly searched the internet and found a large thriving mega-church to attend the next Sunday.  The Mega Church was a 45 minute drive away but if our children were filled spiritually, that was all that mattered.  The Mega Church had all the bells and whistles: fun and colorful children's classrooms, powerful praise and worship bands for both the children's and adults services and my favorite, a coffee shop.

All the way home I heard my kids talk about how much fun this church was and the teaching about the Bible was great.  All that week, my kids told their friends how "cool" this new church was.  The next Sunday, my daughter brought two friends to the "new, cool church" and they accepted Christ that Sunday.  The children's leader was amazed that this was only my daughters second Sunday there.

This week, I spoke with a pastor of a small church and told him this story and he agreed that the small churches cannot compete with the money and staffing of the mega churches.  He proclaimed "The mega churches keep growing and the small churches keep dwindling.'

George Barna and others have also cited that many churches only spend 1/7th of the church income on the children's department even though 2/5ths of the people in the church our children.  My pastor friend also said that a majority of people looking for a church have children and are looking for a good children's ministry.

So my questions are this:

Is the Mega Church simply offering the worldly trappings that parents and kids enjoy or do they truly have the funding and staffing that children's ministry deserves?

Is the small church dwindling away and as my pastor friend said "Cannot compete with Mega Church?"

One thing I have noticed is that while the small church has more of a community-family feel, they are also very cliquey and often drive outsiders away.  Or the established ministry leaders get intimidated when new people show up with some ministry background or spiritual maturity.

There has to be some happy medium?

What do you think the future church will look like in 10 years?

I'd appreciate any thoughts or comments.

Your Greatest Possession - Final

Your Greatest Possession - Final

This is the final in the series in growing our faith.  We discuss how testing our faith allows us to strengthen and increase our faith.

Legacy Podcasts

Your Greatest Possession - Final

Theseare podcasts from various sources that teach and emulate the values andpillars of Legacy Dad. These podcasts are all property of the originalauthor but are free to the public.

You can click the link to play these or right click and save them to play on iTunes or your portable mp3 device.

Never Forget, Never

Here SHE is!  As you scroll down, notice the two twin towers on top.

 


 
Here SHE is, the USS New York, made from the World Trade Center !

USS New York It was built with 24 tons of scrap steel from the World   
Trade Center. It is the fifth in a new class of warship - designed for

missions that include special operations against terrorists. It will carry a
crew of 360 sailors and 700 combat-ready Marines to be delivered ashore

by helicopters and assault craft. Steel from the World Trade Center was

melted down in a foundry in Amite, LA  to cast the ship's bow section.

When it was poured into the molds on Sept 9, 2003, 'those big rough

steelworkers treated it with total reverence,'recalled Navy Capt. Kevin

Wensing, who was there. 'It was a spiritual moment for everybody there.'
Junior Chavers, foundry operations manager, said that when the trade

center steel first arrived, he touched it with his hand and the 'hair on my
neck stood up.' 'It had a big meaning to it for all of us,' he said. 'They

knocked us down. They can't keep us down. We're going to be back.'
The ship's motto?  'Never Forget'

------------------------------------------------------------

I just want to take the time to recognize all those who have served for Country and for Freedom.  As Christians we can reflect on this daily and undertand what loss and then what victory means to be a CHRISTian.  Jesus told the Pharisees that they could knock down this temple and it would be rebuilt in three days.  What the Pharisees did not know was that Jesus was talking about himself.  They tried to destroy the Temple, our most holiest priest and it wasn't just the Pharisees or the Roman Soldiers who did this, it was ALL OF US and our sin that he allowed himself to be put to death in order to pay the ultimate price - For Our Salvation.  He paid the ultimate price and did what he said he would do, rebuild this temple and our Savior Lives and He is our Redeemer.

I know where I was on that fateful morning of September 11, 2001 when the TwinTowers were struck in a violent and terrorist act of cowardice.  I will remember and I will never forget that fateful day, nor will I forget what our Lord, Jesus Christ did for all of us who call Him by name- Our Savior.

God Bless All of You and Keep all of you.  May the Lord Bless thee and keep thee and make His face shine upon thee.

Send A Play Pump To Africa

 

 Direct Donation Link

and the Legacy Dad Group Page

A while back I heard about this great idea called the "Play Pump."

• More than one billion people worldwide do not have access to clean water. 
• Water-relateddiseases are the leading cause of death in the world, taking the livesof 6,000 people a day, and are responsible for 80 percent of allsickness in the world
• 40 billion hours are lost annually to hauling water, a chore primarily undertaken by women and girls.

A life-changing and life-saving invention– the PlayPump® water system -- can provide easy access to cleandrinking water, bring joy to children, and lead to improvementsin health, education, gender equality, and economic development. 

ThePlayPump systems are innovative, sustainable, patented water pumpspowered by children at play.  Installed near schools, the PlayPumpsystem doubles as a water pump and a merry-go-round for children.

The PlayPump system also provides one of the only ways toreach rural and peri-urban communities with potentially life savingpublic health messages.

 

So here is my challenge to Legacy Dad.  

It costs $14,000 to send one full play pump to Africa and supply a village and children with water. 

I am asking anyone who wants to help donate to this cause to please click on the donation button and give whatever you can to this cause.

My goal is to fully fund a Play Pump no matter how long it takes and then hopefully get some pictures of our Play Pump we purchased and the kids and families that will use it.   

If we are truly men of action, here is our chance to prove it.

 

 Direct Donation Link

and the Legacy Dad Group Page</

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