Mentoring Our Boys –

I give more credit to single mothers for courage, determination and perseverance than anyone else. They have been dealt the toughest hand and have been given the most responsibility. They must provide, protect, nurture and mentor for an entire family. They are heros by any definition.

God’s Design for Family

Unfortunately, God did not design the family with a single parent. While there are some great single parent dads out there, four of five single parents are women. This brings to mind the need for male role models for the fatherless boys.

Male Role Models

Every ministry and mentor program for boys encourages single moms to place their sons under the influence of good male role models. Their sons must learn manhood from men. Rick Johnson has found himself, from his Better Dads platform, teaching single mothers how they can best raise their sons into manhood.

Rick Johnson

Rick offers two great resources for single mothers with sons: A paperback or audio book titled That’s My Son: How Moms Can Influence Boys to Become Men of Character and a CD audio titled Courageous Moms Raising Boys to Become Good Men.

Rick says, “As a mother, you hold the fate of the world in your hands.” Keep in mind, Moms, two thirds of our kids today are leaving home after high school graduation from a broken home. Many of our boys - no, most of our boys are being raised by single mothers. So I say again, it’s up to these mothers to place their sons under the influence of good male role models. More of the next generation of men will come from this scenario than any other.

Rick goes on to say, “Men are currently abdicating their roles as leaders in their homes, their communities, and their country in record numbers. This is creating a crisis that is threatening to dissolve the very fabric of society, destroying our country and possibly even the world. Men in our country are mired in apathy and passivity. The reason? They are not being brought up to relish their God-given role as protector of the the provider for their families.”

“The fact that men are abandoning their families in droves is destroying our country. I’m convinced that fatherlessness is directly or indirectly the cause of nearly every problem we face as a society today.”

Raise Up the Current Generation of Boys

Rick has concluded, “I work with many men in an attempt to change this trend, but I believe it may be too late to reverse this epidemic in our generation. The only way to stop it is to raise up the current generation of boys to be brave-hearted stalwarts of virtue and character.”

It’s true. Most of society’s problems are symptoms of a single problem: we don’t teach our boys how to be men. Today’s men were not taught how to be men either and therefore, they are ill-equipped to pass on Godly manhood themselves.

Some concluding remarks from Rick’s book:

“One last thing I’d like you to remember: boys are fun to raise! If you understand the differences between males and females, you will enjoy raising your son beyond measure. Just remember - expect boys to be a little louder and more physically active than girls. Try not to be too overprotective of them, and keep your sense of humor. I promise, you will find no greater satisfaction in life than raising your son from a helpless baby and then seeing him exhibit strength of character beyond your wildest expectations as he enters manhood.”

I encourage you to check out the Better Dads website (yes, moms, check out Better Dads). I also recommend A Squire’s Devotional: Personal Devotions for Teens on a Quest for Manhood. Help your sons discover authentic, biblical manhood from the world of men.

Posted on December 10th, 2008 by Jeff Purkiss
Filed under: Compound Return, Cultural Issues, Fathering/Mentoring