Real Men Bless Their Children

Those of you, who have known me for some time, know that this message that Bill Glass gave on every platform in the world, has been a great inspiration to me. My life as a teenager and even my early training was all about sports, winning, and setting high goals. When Bill was speaking at a mayor's prayer breakfast in the early 1970's, he challenged all of us who called ourselves parents to model the example of Jesus rather than the example of Vince Lombardi when it came to parenting. Giving your children your blessing is more important than setting goals for their success. This skill seems to be easier for women than it is for men and yet even today, all parents both Mom and Dad would do well to think about how they relate. I realized that I may have been too much Vince, and not enough Jesus.

In Bill's book, Champions For Life, he relates to how a negative remark his mother made when he was a young child stayed with him forever. It was not his mother's intent to hurt him, but the power of our words and the force of our desire to show our favor to our kids and grandkids is an incredibly powerful influence. Why is this so hard? I believe Mark 3:27 speaks to this as it talks about how the most powerful men can be bound up while the evil one walks right into his house and plunders it. The powers of materialism, pride, pornography, and selfishness are clearly binding people in our world today and preventing us from being all that we could be in Christ.

There is someone in your life that God is calling you to bless. You have been reluctant because you don't want appear soft, or you just aren't sure this is the right time to say something. Believe me, you can say something this week, next week, and the week after and the person will always respond by knowing and believing that you are really in this person's corner. Let them know what you really appreciate about them and what it is that you can see Jesus in their life by watching them. You may have told them already, but don't think that telling them again will have less impact than it did the first time. God Bless You as you give your blessings to kids, spouses, friends, pastors, neighbors, workmates, and people you met for the first time who were doing something generous.

If you are looking for a last minute Christmas gift, visit your local Christian bookstore and ask for Bill's book. You can view other MMM's at www.dlsconsult.com. Thanks to all of you for your thoughts and comments for the past several editions of the MMM.

Please contact Dwight Short if you would like to receive future Monday Morning Messages.

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