I Refuse To Be A Dad.

Conviction: 
noun.
-a strong belief or opinion. 

Convictions are things that should be taken seriously. A conviction could be compared to a calling from God and should be treated as such. A conviction strives to make the comfortable become uncomfortable.


Obviously, you get the point that a rather large conviction has been placed on my heart. And friends, your assumptions are correct.



The conviction? I refuse to be a dad.


When I say I refuse to be a dad, I mean I refuse to be a dad of the 21st Century. I don't refuse to have kids, or be a dad to people who don't have one. I mean I refuse to be dad of distractions in a world full of technology, to be more specific I mean:

• I refuse to be a dad who misses his son or daughter's first steps because I was too busy with my phone to notice the milestone in their life.
• I refuse to be a dad who ignores the signs of their child's depression or other mental illness and fails to add encouragement because my favorite TV show comes on in a minute and I can't record it because I'm recording five other things. 
• I refuse to be a dad who ignores requests from their child to play outside because it's too hot and I'd rather aimlessly surf the internet.
• I refuse to be a dad who doesn't take family dinner's or family get together's seriously and instead decides to play games on my phone.
• I refuse to be a dad who ignores the boys that my daughter brings into the house because I'm too busy texting people that are miles away from me. 
• I refuse to be a dad who portrays a message to my son that a video game is the key to happiness, when it brings turmoil, competition, and unnecessary anger. 
• I refuse to be a dad who spends more time with technology than I do with the Word of God when I know that my kids are looking up to me and thinking that technology should be first on their priority list as well.
• I refuse to be a dad who pays more attention to a material object in my pocket more so than the people right in front of my face.
• I refuse to be a dad who turns to google on my phone to get out of tough situations when I could teach my kids about reconciliation face-to-face.
• I refuse to be a dad that worships electronics.

To every single dad out there, know that I respect you and I'm praying for you. I couldn't even imagine the struggle that you face on a day-to-day basis with what society tells you to do, and how the Bible tells you to serve.

To the future fathers, please don't make technology your idol. I have witnessed first-hand far too many children that don't feel like their parents love them because they don't spend enough time with them.

Time is swiftly beautiful, and all of the electronics that you have can wait. Technology is not the key to Salvation, when used incorrectly it could be the complete opposite of that.


The day that I become a father, I hope to have already disciplined myself against the LED lights that bring me entertainment, but rooted into the Word of God who offers eternal life and contains verses on how to raise your children.

Today, I realized that technology isn't all that it's cracked up to be.

To my future children, I love you and I'm praying for you, and I will be able to maintain my priorities: you will be at the top of that list and electronics won't even be there, I promise you.

But for now, it starts with self-discipline, being rooted into the Word, and breaking away from the latest and greatest iPhone ad.

Chains will be broken.
Temptation will be set free.
Eyes will be opened.
But it starts with me.



-LC