In the month of June, we were graced with and celebrated Fathers’ Day. For me this is a day that I get to celebrate not only my father but all the father figures I’ve had throughout my life. My dad, however, has always been my first superhero. I recall he used to love cooking for us on Sundays and spoil us with goodies whenever mum was away. He was a somewhat religious man, he was good but not as deep in the Christian faith as he is today. He gave me sound advice on life and business, but unfortunately most of it fell on immature ears. In retrospect, I thank him for that because the seeds that were planted back then are coming to fruition now. The first great pieces of advice my father gave me in business were:”

       1. Get into business for yourself or you will spend the rest of your life building someone else’s           dream.
   2.  Become a manufacturer and be in control of your means of production.
   3.  Design a product that you can sell beyond your race and you won’t go wrong.

I was only 9 then and I can safely say my father is the reason I am this extremely confident woman I am today. He would constantly tell me how great I was and how I could do anything under the sun. I am eternally grateful for that. My dad has now replaced Sunday cooking with Sunday sermons. He has made what I believe is the most powerful decision a father could make for his children, leaving them with a rich spiritual legacy.

I recall reading the book of Kings, specifically the stories of King David’s descendants. Some would do things that were not acceptable in the eyes of the Lord but it would be written in the Bible that because of their father David the wrath of God was reduced. David left such a legacy in Spirit that God’s wrath towards his descendants would be satiated because of him. David was famous for being a man after God’s heart and a worshipper. He was king, he had riches, he conquered nations but his legacy was in worshipping GOD. That’s what he left for his descendants. Society teaches us that the value of a man be in his monetary wealth, how many cars, houses and money he leaves his children. Please do not misunderstand me those are nice things, everybody likes them but they don’t last without proper spiritual backup. Fathers that DARE to go to Church to worship, pray and serve God are leaving a spiritual legacy that NOONE can take away from their children.

According to Dictionary.com, the word Father, when used as a verb with an object, means “to beget, to be the creator, founder, originator or source. That last definition is what caught my attention. I am humbled and privileged that my father reached a point in his life where he came to the realisation that leaving a spiritual legacy for my sisters and I far outweighs the value of any earthly possessions he may leave. There are two interesting stories in the Bible I would like to highlight at this point. The first one is of Jairus and his ailing daughter. Jairus was a man of the cloth himself. He was respected and yet he humbled himself and sought Jesus Christ to save his daughter. He didn’t care that people could see him, he was just a father on a mission to save his little girl. Two things come to light, he was a present father that he knew of his daughter’s illness and he was wise enough and humble to seek help from Jesus Christ.  Lesson learnt, BE PRESENT.  And know your God can do all things for you even resurrect your dead child.

No name man. One of Jesus’ act of deliverance was of a young boy who used to throw himself into the fire when he was having fits. The boy was presented to Jesus Christ by his father who narrated that it began when the boy was young. Let me emphasise this, he came to the Lord with His Father. These are examples of what a source does for a child. Even as far as seeking your baby’s deliverance, that’s how far a father can go.

Do not take a back seat in the physical, emotional and SPIRITUAL growth of your children to an extent that feel it’s only the mother’s job to do it. Some years ago I watched an investigative show about botched clinical circumcisions on young men that some of them have lost the use of their organs and I was in such pain for them and yet one thing struck none of the interviewed cases has a dad present. How can this be that these atrocities are happening to these young men and their fathers can’t hold their hands through it? Maybe they were busy or didn’t want to be on camera, but when the boys told their stories they never mentioned their fathers. That just struck me as odd.

Be a present dad those memories never die. I am 37 and I still recall my dad’s cooking days and I was 5. By design, God made you the SOURCE, if you don’t give your family spiritual emotional support you leave us children vulnerable to all and anything to devour us.

     Create lasting covenants for us like Abraham did

     Leave us powerful spiritual legacies like David did.

     Give us wisdom like Solomon

     Plead for us like Jairus

Thank you to all fathers who are being a great SOURCE to our children.