Daddy?

Something that I have been learning a lot of lately is how much of an influence a father has in the life of a child. It has been proven that a father is the crucial influence when it comes to building the self-esteem and character of their child... whether that is in a negative or positive way. If the father is distant and uninvolved in the lives of his children, this is the idea that the child grows up with of what a father is supposed to be like. If the child never hears, "I'm proud of you" or "I love you" from their fathers, they grow up trying to always please their fathers and always missing the mark, or so they think, because they never hear and know that their fathers are proud and love them. This is something that stikes the self-esteem and character development of the child because that is all they see and grow up with, which affects the rest of their lives. Or if the father leaves the mother and the family due to different circumstances, which the child unavoidably sees or finds out, this is the image of "daddy" that they grow up knowing to be true.

People who grew up in family situations like these; with fathers who are less than perfect (and who's father is?) can easily confuse and see a fuzzy picture of who God really is as our Heavenly Father. If they have experienced abuse or hurt by their fathers, when they hear the word "Heavenly Father" the only thing that possibly pops up into their minds are the images of the hurt, abuse, them leaving, them just being distant... etc... and it is difficult to see any other image when thinking of any father... even the Heavenly Father. And this is how we end up relating to God - especially when the knowledge of Him is limited.

Anyway, I just say that to say this: As a father, this new found (yet not really that new) knowledge really makes me think about how I interact with my son... and someday, other kids.
I want to have a growing and healthy relationship with them. One that will give them an accurate (as accurate as a human being can give an image of God) image of God and Who He really is and how much He really cares for them. Not an image that will distort their perception of what it means to have a Heavenly Father.... an image that will give them a heartwarming (because of the Holy Spirit) feeling of our Father in heaven.... a healthy and productive image. One that will leave them with nothing more than a vibrant, healthy and growing relationship with Him.... not some staunch, man made religion that turns so many people away from Him.

What do you think? Do you think this is possible?