What about my personal review as a participant of Father School?
“I attended the course 9 years ago. My wife and my children treasured what I did for them during Father School. It is something that my family cherish until now.”
fatherhood
A Beautiful Scar
It has been more than two months after the incident. The scar on my forehead is still there. All I remembered was a loud ‘bang’, then I flew for 2 metres and landed face down on the road. Blood was streaming down my forehead, my nose and my knees. I laid motionless for a while. Some quick-thinking passers-by carried me to the roadside. I turned around and saw the stationary bus not too far from me. I realised then I had been hit. The accident took place in Bangkok.
After I flew back to Singapore, I told a non-Christian friend about this. He said I was lucky to be alive. The scar on my forehead reminds me that I am not supposed to live.
Do you have a scar on your body? Some of us hide our scars because they are unsightly. Some scars, however, cannot be hidden and they make us feel ugly. I am not sure if the scar on my forehead will be there for life or it will go away eventually. Scarred for life? I hope not.
John 20:
20 Now when He (Jesus) had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord…25 The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”…27. Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side.
Jesus, the perfect, unblemished Son of God came down from heaven, a place of unparalleled beauty, lived here 33 years and died an ugly death. The whole crucifixion ordeal left Him scarred for eternity. The spear, the nails, the whip and the thorny crown left permanent marks on His body. Thomas was invited to feel and touch His nail-pierced hand. Jesus was scarred for eternity so that we could be with Him forever and ever.
But those are beautiful scars. They are not ugly at all. Those are evidence of love. They are there forever to remind us of His everlasting love for us.
“I have loved you with an everlasting love.” (Jeremiah 31:3)
When I look at my forehead now, the scar speaks of God’s love for me and my family.
I could have died in a foreign land. My wife could have lost a husband. My children could have been fatherless. I could have been on a life-support machine for life.
How do I know Jesus loves me and my family? I have a beautiful scar. Do you have one?
Have you ever hugged your dad?
I wish I have a closer relationship with my father. When I am with him, there is little to talk about. Just awkward silence. Maybe I had a girlfriend too early. So I wasn’t home most of the time. Perhaps I left home too early to study abroad. Now we live in different cities. We only see each other twice or thrice a year.
My father is a good man. He worked hard and provided for the family. I have no lack in my life.
He is a man of few words. I never know what he thinks about me. I have no idea what he feels about me. I am sure he loves me but… I just can’t feel his love. I am not an orphan, but I feel emotionally detached from him. I never know if my father loves me as a son. I tried to recall an occasion when my father played with me or when he hugged me and told me how much he loves me. None came to my mind.
Do you have similar story?
My relationship with my father is best summarised in something I wrote not too long ago.
Dad –
What do you think about me?
Am I precious in your eyes?
Am I a special child?
Do I have a part in your heart?
Have you ever sung over me like I sing over my baby?
Remember – I am your firstborn
Do you have any feelings towards me?
Do you really love me?
A thought came
My dad himself may not be well-fathered
He left his dad for studies when he was just a teen.
Then I heard a voice from above
Go hug your father
I have never done this before
Seemed strange
What would my dad think of me?
Will I be accepted?
I did it anyway
And I have not stopped hugging my dad since
Have you ever hugged your dad?
You need to hold him tight
‘cos few men know how to embrace their child…
Hug your dad when you meet him. Embrace your loved ones. Make this Chinese New year a meaningful one.
p/s: Above article was published by Centre For Fathering several years ago
Success = GOOD exam results?
A school principal in Singapore sent this letter to the parents before the exams.
Dear Parents,
The exams of your children are to start soon. I know you are all really anxious for your child to do well.
But, please do remember, amongst the students, who will be sitting for the exams, there is an artist, who doesn’t need to understand Maths.
There is an entrepreneur, who doesn’t care about History or English literature.
There’s a musician, whose Chemistry marks won’t matter.
There’s a sportsperson, whose physical fitness is more important than Physics..like Schooling (He won the first Olympic Gold Medal for Singapore in Rio 2016. In the process, he beat the great Michael Phelps!)
If your child does get top marks, that’s great! But, if he or she doesn’t, please don’t take away their self-confidence and dignity from them.
Tell them it’s OK, it’s just an exam! They are cut out for much bigger things in life.
Tell them, no matter what they score, you love them and will not judge them.
Please do this, and when you do, watch your children conquer the world. One exam or a low mark won’t take away their dreams and talent.
And please, do not think that doctors and engineers are the only happy people in the world.
With warm regards
The Principal
Exam can build and also DESTROY a child’s person-hood. It can make or break our child. It really depends on us parents. Some kids’ hearts are very fragile. Like glass, once it is broken, it is difficult to fix.
100% Prayer
I was at a prayer meet recently. A pastor and a brother asked for prayer. Their children are no longer in church.
Did I see moist eyes after the prayer?
Our children follow us to God’s house when they were young.When they are older, they may not want to follow us any more. Some may even abandon the faith altogether.
But Jesus seemed to do an admirable job with His disciples.
Jesus takes care of His people like a shepherd. He gathers the lambs and carries them close to His heart. What happen when one of his lambs, just one out of a hundred, is not found in the sheepfold? Would He not climb a thousand hills just to find the precious little one? The pain of losing even one was too much for Him to bear. 100% and no less. That’s the heart of a shepherd.
“Suppose a man has 100 sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the 99 sheep grazing in the pasture and look for the lost sheep until he finds it?”
Luke 15:4 NOG
Have we lost someone precious to us to the world? Maybe we have lost our children to computer gaming. Pray to the Shepherd. Pray the 100% prayer.