Fathers

I need to revise this, I sent this before I left this morning.
And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Ephesians 6:4 
I don't know where to begin. I wasn't the best father. I wish I'd done better, but I think I did the best I knew at the time.  Nobody sets out to screw up their kids. Nobody sets out to be the worst parent they can be, They perhaps they just do nothing. In this scripture there are two words that stand out to me. Wrath and nurture. Wrath in the original language is keyed to the same number in Strongs concordance as provoke with several other words in between when translated into English. In the original language Provoke and wrath are one word.   It means: To rouse to wrath, to provoke,exasperate, anger.   I  guess I may be a little angry this morning as I begin to write this. I am going to Dad's and Donuts with Eli this morning as a backup Dad. That's what Grandfathers are sometimes, backup Dad's when the real Dad's don't show up. Haji came and you should have seen the smile on Elijah's face when he saw his Daddy.  When I was at Grandparents day with Eli, another little white boy from Eli's class came up to me and asked if I would take him to the library. Of course I couldn't, I was there with Eli and I didn't know this kid from Adam and I doubt the teacher would allow it in the first place, for me to take some kid I don't know to the library. But by the same token, it breaks my heart that this kid had to ask, there was nobody at grandparents day for him. I am 2500 miles from my other grandkids and perhaps that is why there is no one there for this kid on that day. I don't know.  The other word was nurture, which means:  1. The whole training and education of children (which relates to the cultivation of minds and morals, and employs for this purpose now commands and admonitions, now reproof and punishment) It also includes the training and care of the body  2. whatever in adults also cultivates the soul, esp. by correcting mistakes and curbing passions. A. instruction which aims at increasing virtue. B. chastisement, chastening, (of the evils with which God visits men for their amendment)  Wow what a mouthful. Fathers have a big job to fill and you can't do it by staying home or being absent. This is a big deal foe Elijah and Eli's dad. It shows he cares, it brightens Eli's day more than another large box of lego's.  His Dad has the opportunity to nurture. all that stuff in the meaning of the word nurture. We have a fatherless generation coming up and it should scare us. The vacuum that is left by Dad's not showing up can be filled by any type of garbage this world has to offer. and as I read the definition of nurture, there is a large space to fill.  A grandfather is like the second or third string on a team. They will not be as effective as a Daddy can be. Nobody can fill Daddy's spot.  I have said this before and I believe our nation has an epidemic of absent fathers. It is not good for our children or for our nation. Divorce, out of wedlock babies, alcoholism, drugs,even death,  whatever the cause it is leaving a big empty spot in the lives of our children. I don't want to offend anyone with my writing but this is from the heart. God bless, LVZ,