BlogPay Attention, Dad!

30 years ago in a Christian school, a high school boy in a counselor’s office said, “My dad doesn’t care about me; I hardly see him.  I have everything I want, including my own car. He never asks where I go or when I get home.  He just ignores me.”

A few years later, Patricia Hersch wrote A Tribe Apart, analyzing the teen world, noting, “Most adolescents are growing up with no adults around, a deficit of attention.”  Today’s technologies (TV, video games, social media like TikTok, etc.) can become convenient baby sitters, playpens, and teen traps.

For us fathers, Father’s Day is a reminder to pay attention to our children.  Summertime for some dads means more time at home, more chances to take the kids to the beach, maybe a picnic at the park, or reading a book on the porch for the youngest ones.

All year, Dads and Moms, pay attention to your kids in a planned way. For example, insist on everyone in the family having a meal together, with Dad asking questions of each one: “What’s one thing you learned in school today? What’s the best thing that happened to you today? Where did you see God today?”

Overall, Dad, the best attention to pay your children is this: “We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done” (Psalm 78:4).