This post originally appeared on the Michigan Dads blog in October of last year. Given my immediate focus on By Dads, For Dads, I thought it would be worthwhile to share with all of you here. Be a leader dads. Be a leader.
Isn’t it a great feeling when like minds come together? Over the past couple of weeks, this has happened for me in conversations that I’ve had with Matt Eder,Dave Peckens, and Elena Wollborg.
Let me give you some background. On September 29, TEDxDetroit was held at the Detroit Institute of Arts. In typical fashion, the Detroit blogger community stepped up and shared their thoughts on what TEDx Detroit meant to them, myself included. As I read through some of them, I came across this post from Matt Eder on Michigan Dads.
At that moment, it hit me. I’ve been trying to figure out “the thing” that I wanted to do to help metro Detroit. It involved my kids and it involved helping people. We can all talk about changing Detroit or renewing the city but in the end change really only happens when you can influence and encourage people to jump on board and help you.
In my immediate circle of influence is my family. My kids are at an age right now where they are soaking in everything. Complete sponges. My thoughts immediately turned to volunteering in the community in order to teach my kids a lesson in humility and serving. So that’s what we’re going to do with Matt, Dave, Elena and our families. We’re still developing the idea and the platform so stay tuned for more details.
Our larger hope is that people will see what we are doing as leaders of our families and see the value in what we are doing and want to join us. Can we be that mustard seed that encourages others to take the next step of action? I really hope so because when something small can blossom into something huge, people take notice.
Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade.” ~ Mark 4:30-32 (NIV)
For me, my future is solely dependent on the foundations that I lay for my kids. I believe this is what God expects from all of us that are parents. The only way for us to lay this foundation is to invest our time with our kids. We need to be there and lead them or else someone else will and it might not be down a path we want.
So I encourage all of you parents, especially the dads, to lead your families before someone or something else does. You have a tremendous influence whether you know it or not.
Just for fun, I thought I’d share with you a video from last weekend as I was hanging out with my boys on a Sunday afternoon at The Village of Rochester Hills. We had a blast running around and as you can see the smile on their faces made it all worth it.
Rey(es) of Light 