Home School Heartbeat Radio Program

The most important role a father has is being a spiritual leader in the home. Join Michael Farris, Chairman and General Counsel of Home School Legal Defense Association, on today's Home School Heartbeat as he offers some wise advice and encouragement to dads.

Michael Farris:

Just about every homeschool convention has a workshop entitled, "The Father's Role." I have frequently had the opportunity to lead these workshops, so I know from first-hand experience that they are very well attended.

Dads, our primary responsibility is exercising leadership in our home. Leadership can be an ambiguous concept, and we may occasionally find ourselves asking uncomfortable questions like, "How do I lead my family?" and maybe even, "Where am I leading my family?"

The first, and probably the most important, aspect of our role as fathers is spiritual leadership. We know we should lead in family devotions. But I would guess that less than 20 percent of the Christian families in America have consistent family devotions. I don't have a magic formula for family devotions, but I do have one suggestion that has helped me and many others.

Leadership involves helping others reach goals; spiritual leadership means helping our children and our wives reach their spiritual goals. A good program of family devotions starts by sitting down with your wife and creating a clear and objective list of the spiritual goals you want each of your children to reach before they're ready to leave home. Family devotions can then be structured to bring scriptural truth and practical instruction designed to help your child reach these goals. I'm Michael Farris.