Fathers Forgive

I will start today's podcast with the parable of the prodigal son as recorded in Luke 15 verses 11 to 32.

The parable is also known as the parable of the Two Brothers, Lost Son, Loving Father, or of the Forgiving Father. In it, a father has two sons. The younger son asks for his inheritance and leaves home to live life on his own terms. This caused great shame to the family because the son was acting as if his father were already dead.

The young man squanders his money and sinks into poverty when he finds himself eating food with pigs. He finally realizes that even his father's servants have more than he does and returns home.

The son's plan is to express remorse and ask to become a servant in his father's house, but instead of being upset, the father is thrilled at this lost son's return. He calls for a celebration and orders new clothes for the son, who has been reduced to wearing rags.

The father's embrace symbolizes his embrace of forgiveness, a forgiveness that was offered freely to the son when he returned. The father's grace is what enables the son to live in a relationship with him again. This outward expression of forgiveness should always precede our own inward acceptance of it.

Forgiveness is a theme that should sound familiar to anyone who knows the Biblical story of the prodigal son. When you think of Jesus’ story, it’s the father in this well-known parable that comes to mind: the father who has been eagerly awaiting his son’s return yet demonstrates his love through forgiveness and unconditional welcome when he returns.

Fathers often set the tone for family forgiveness.

When they are ready to forgive, the whole family feels it, and when they are unable to forgive, the family is locked in turmoil.

We have learned that it is important to forgive ourselves first. We can then forgive others and forget what went wrong. This allows us to move on and improve future interactions.

I'm not saying men are more forgiving than women. But men tend to be more likely to hold grudges, so when a father models forgiveness, he not only has a greater impact on his kids but on their spouses and friends as well.

It's up to fathers to make forgiveness an expectation rather than an exception in the home. If you want your child to be forgiving, forgive others openly and honestly before them, especially if you've been hurt badly.

A father's role in teaching his children about forgiveness is critical. Fathers have a unique ability to shape their children's perceptions as well as their behaviors.

Forgiveness is one of those things that can't be taught just by talking about it. Forgiveness has to be experienced, and the best way for fathers to teach their children about forgiveness is by modeling it for them.

Children learn by watching others, especially their parents. When watching their fathers forgive someone in the family who has hurt them, they'll see how their fathers' pain melts away as they release the hurtful person from the burden of hurting them.

The children will also witness that letting go doesn't mean letting someone off the hook or forgetting what happened; they'll see that forgiving means accepting responsibility for your own feelings and emotional well-being while letting go of those feelings so they don't control you anymore.

Forgiveness is Associated with improved communication with your child

Childhood is a time of wonder and growth. It is also a time when misunderstandings and misdeeds happen. As a father, forgiveness is an important part of your relationship with your child. Your forgiveness teaches your child that forgiving others is important.

You probably remember what it was like to be a child, making mistakes, feeling guilty and sometimes even being punished. You can use this experience to help you forgive your child. When you do, you will be teaching him or her the importance of forgiveness.

Forgiveness is associated with increased well-being and improved communication with your child. Children notice when their parents hold grudges against each other and may feel at risk if they share something that may not be well received by the other parent.

Forgiving your child will improve communication between the two of you. Your child may feel less defensive about his or her actions and be more likely to admit wrongdoing or take responsibility for mistakes. Forgiveness also helps children learn how to forgive others, including brothers and sisters, classmates, and friends. This can go a long way toward improving relationships throughout life.

As I get much older, I have come to realize that forgiveness isn't only about healing from pain; it's about doing what's right for my family and for myself. As fathers, we are responsible for setting an example for how my children will deal with their own hurts from others. As parents, we want our children to be people who are able to experience life without carrying around the weight of yesterday's hurts. And forgiveness is a critical part of letting go of those hurts.

If you’ve had a stressful and confrontational relationship with your child, forgiveness can have a positive impact on your relationship. Forgiveness is not forgetting the offense or condoning the behavior. Rather, it’s a choice to let go of resentment and thoughts of revenge. When you choose to forgive someone who has hurt you, you take away their power.

Forgiveness doesn’t necessarily mean reconciliation; it means you no longer carry around anger and bitterness toward that person. Research has shown that fathers who forgive their adult children for past mistakes report greater closeness and better communication with their adult children compared to fathers who haven’t forgiven their adult children.

Fathers who are less forgiving tended to have more depressed or angry moods, which in turn result in lower-quality parenting. Why fathers who are more forgiving will relate better to their children, which is related to higher-quality parenting. This is also true for mothers.

From the foregoing, forgiveness is correlated with better parenting quality and forgiveness may be an important part of family life.

In conclusion, a  culture of forgiveness in the home honors family member’s spiritual growth and maturity. This will reflect in the children’s interaction with other members of society. Remember that family is the strength of every society.