22 Dec 2009, Posted by Lance in Leadership,Values, No Comments.

The Husband and Father Your Wife and Children Deserve

I want you to think back about when you first became a
Christian or when you made a major life decision? Who did you go to seek advice about this
decision? Whose example made you
consider this change?

9 times out of 10, we follow the examples and life decisions of people we respect. A Parent, a
Coach, a Leader or a Friend. Someone
held influence over us and we trusted their example and respected their character. Now let me ask you this? Are you being that person for someone else?

I’m sitting here in another foreign country, far from my
family during the Holidays and reading a book about one of the most successful
football coaches of all time. His walk
with Christ began when he noticed men that he respected had changed their lives in
major ways by coming to Christ. The funny thing is, the
people who set this example had no idea that someone was watching them or
making decisions based on their example.

Now let me tie this in with Dante’s posts on Purity.

Have you ever wondered why guys like Tiger Woods or Kobe
Bryant cheat on their wives? They have
money, fame, and some really beautiful wives and then they throw it all away
for one night of passion or to put another notch in their count of women they
have been with? We look at these
examples and say “What an idiot, he had it all and throw it all away!”

I guarantee, at this very moment, someone is looking at your life and your family
and wishing they had what you had.

This realization really hit me a few years ago when a friend
of mine stated this to me. My friend just wanted to have a loving wife and family but he was sadly going through his second divorce.
Both times, his wives had cheated on him. He didn’t come out and say it directly, but
in a moment of emotion he asked me how I did it with my family. He had been watching.

Over the last two years, wives have asked my wife if I would
talk to their husbands or if being around me could somehow rub off on their
husbands. I was dumbfounded.

To me there is an unwritten guy code and unless I am a very close accountability friend; I wouldn’t go and tell some guy that his marriage
is screwed up. However, my example was
speaking volumes and other people had been watching.

Because of my ignorance and selfishness, I almost lost my
beautiful wife and children once. Once I
almost lost them, the realization hit me of what I was really losing. I had the most beautiful woman that other guys
envied and two beautiful children,
one boy and one girl. People close to me
were saying “What an idiot, he had it all and throw it all away!” Does this sound familiar? Luckily, God intervened and brought me close
to the edge but didn’t let me fall over it.
I made a vow to God and my wife that I would become, not what society
said was a good husband, but what my wife and children deserved.

What does your wife and children deserve?

If there are any questions read - Ephesians 5: 25-33

We are setting the example everyday by what we do, what we
say, and the lives we lead. The
slightest flirtation with a co-worker or other woman should never rear its ugly
head when we are on duty. Our words
should uplift and edify others. Our work
ethic should be superior. We should wear
our Character and Integrity on our sleeves for everyone to see because whether
we like it or not, people are watching.
Someone is watching you every day and wondering if this Christianity
thing is really worth it.