The night before I married my wife, Marilynn, my dad gave me some advice I’ve never forgotten.
Dad told me that the best gift I could ever give our children was to love their mother.
That’s it. No puppies, or gifts, or vacations would ever bless our children to the degree that loving their mother would.
Dad had figured out that the best way to raise healthy kids began with a loving marriage. One in which dad loves mom whole-heartedly. Is willing to sacrifice anything and everything for her. Is willing to die for his wife (Eph. 5:22-28).
A marriage rooted in Jesus’s love creates a familial environment in which children feel secure. Safe. Loved no matter what. In a home rooted in grace. Where children learn first-hand what unconditional love truly means.
More than anything else in the world, children desire to feel secure. To live in a home without fear.
Where that begins? When a father realizes that the best gift he can ever give his kids is to love their mother.