You’ve celebrated the neckties and put away the teacups. Maybe you celebrated Father’s Day like you always have. But these are not the times they have always been.
On April 19, the American Academy of Pediatrics published a new guide for teaching children about sex. Called “You-ology: A Puberty Guide for EVERY Body” the Academy asserts that the book aims “to talk about puberty in an inclusive way.”
The book includes the chapters we might expect. Children are taught how to navigate puberty and the associated physical changes.
But it’s not the same
But unlike previous instructional guides from a community that claims to be concerned about the health of children, this guide slants heavily toward teaching the acceptance of transgenderism.
The book recommends changing terms that are not inclusive, such as referring to males as “sperm-making bodies” rather than as boys or men. In addition, the book normalizes transgenderism and shames students who might disagree with someone’s gender identity choice.
“You-ology” uses short stories to illustrate how students should be inclusive. In one instance, a group of boys in a boys’ locker room notices a biological female is there with them. They question why, and they are then accosted by the girl’s brother, who informs them that she is transgender.
The book also asserts that, rather than two expressions of gender, there’s a multitude. And this from a group of medical professionals.
The priority for Dads
It’s hard to imagine a more compelling reminder of the necessity of fatherhood. Masculine, biblical, godly, and confident fatherhood (Deut. 6:4-9, Eph. 6:4). In our age of gender confusion, where ideology trumps biology, Dads need to sharpen one fundamental purpose: Shaping the identities of their children.
We know we are supposed to be raising godly children and growing them into responsible citizens. In the past, that meant teaching them right from wrong, how to take responsibility for their actions, to be honest, kind, and hard-working citizens. All that, and more, is still true.
But now Dads are compelled to assume another responsibility, one that cannot be left to chance, to culture, or even to the educational community.
Now, in addition to all that parents need to do, we must teach our boys and girls that there is a real difference between men and women. And that their biological identity is a fact to be embraced as part of who God made them to be.
Don’t take this for granted. If you are not intentionally teaching your kids about biologically identity, someone else is. And it might not be what you want them to learn.
Not to be left to chance
Just ask a Florida mom named January Littlejohn.
In May Ms. Littlejohn, who works as a mental health professional, sued her teenage daughter’s Florida school district when she learned they had been secretly talking to her about gender transitioning. Littlejohn knew nothing about it until her daughter had already been directed by the school to transition and had been provided the means to do so. Her daughter was 13 years old at the time.
Littlejohn warns that her experience is not isolated. Rather, it is becoming the norm.
“This is happening all over the nation,” she told Fox & Friends First. “This same protocol is in place in many, many schools across districts everywhere, and even the guides being used to dictate these transgender support plans that cut parents out even have the same language.”
When education becomes indoctrination, parents should object. And parents cannot assume that the culture is supporting them as they raise their kids. Quite the contrary. Much of our culture and our systems of education and government are strategically removing authority from parents and redefining what it means to be human.
So what can you do? (See here, too).
For that reason, Christian Dads need a strategy that includes three basics:
- Cultivate your own walk with Christ
You cannot lead your kids farther than you have gone yourself. Do they know you love Jesus? Do they see the markers in your Bible from your own study of God’s Word? Do you show in your behavior how Christ is shaping your life?
This cannot be overstated. For parents to pass along a biblical worldview to their kids, parents must possess and apply a biblical worldview themselves. And that starts with the way we are created, male and female, to serve Him (Gen. 1:27).
To be a role model for manhood, for both your sons and your daughters, you need to start with being a role model for a man who walks with Christ (Eph. 6:4).
- Learn to address truth and falsehood
You are the front line of defense for your family, and that includes standing up for the truth. You don’t need to be abrasive or argumentative, but you need to be informed and confident. Know your Bible, but also know the worldviews that are shaping your children (2 Tim. 2:14-15).
For instance, as our culture clamors to be woke, it also contradicts itself. See, despite the declarations of the woke culture, secular studies continue to agree with Christians that fathers are necessary to grow healthy and well-rounded boys and girls. For instance, see the article “The Importance of Fathers for Child Development” in Psychology Today, or the blog “How Fathers Influence Their Daughters” by Christian psychologist, Dr. David Stoop.
These are just two examples that illustrate what we have always known. Kids need Dads, or they need men who can stand in and step up when Dads are not available.
Sure, kids raised by single moms (I was) can become healthy, well-rounded adults. But no one can improve on God’s design.
And the culture cannot get around that. And whether the woke culture likes it or not, acknowledging fatherhood acknowledges manhood. No amount of linguistic gymnastics can get away from the fact that God designed human beings to be raised in homes that include a father and a mother–a man and a woman–to display, model, and invest the biological identities of both.
- Take your kids to church
Moms have a significant impact on the spiritual development of children. No question about it.
But studies consistently show that when Dads lead out and take the family to church, and when Dads are involved in church, the number of family members who come to faith in Christ, and the kids who retain their faith as adults, increases exponentially (Josh. 24:15).
And why would you entrust your kids to a confused, secular, and sinful world all week long but fail to saturate them in the community of faith every chance you get?
After all, how can you complain about the lies the world is teaching your kids if you are not personally invested in teaching them the truth?
Dads: For help in knowing your role and influencing your kids for Christ, visit: https://www.drjamesdobson.org/strengthening-fathers