Parenting Seminar

Which type of roof is more durable:  thatch or metal sheeting?  Fifteen couples responded in unison to our speaker:  metal, of course.  But what if that metal roof is mounted on a rickety mud hut?  It will collapse when the rains come.  That’s because the house doesn’t depend upon the roof; it must have a solid foundation and structure to support the metal sheeting.

It was Saturday morning, March 1.  A breeze wafted through the pavilion at Boniface’s Christian school where nearly twenty men were gathered to commence our year of father-daughter bonding activities with a parenting seminar, as in 2024.  This year, at their request, most of their wives attended as well.

The Brazilian pastor who presented the seminar brought his wife too this year, to help him teach.  His opening point about a sturdy roof needing a strong support to serve its purpose illustrated the importance of a stable marriage and family life allowing children to excel.  He speaks from experience:  all four of his children are now well-rounded adults who love the Lord.

To show the vibrancy of their marriage, his wife took his hand and exclaimed that this still gives her shivers of passionate excitement after three decades with the man she loves.  Lest anyone think that’s because she and her husband are alike, she recited a list of their differences, starting with the shocking fact that he won’t eat chicken!  While it is natural for a woman to sense an unbreakable bond with the children she bears, she reminded the ladies of the supernatural reality that their marital relationship is actually the Biblically inseparable one-flesh union.

Someone had wisely arranged the plastic chairs for the seminar in pairs so each couple could sit together instead of separating the group by gender according to local preference.  During the three-hour program, the husbands and wives joined in laughter at the presenters’ winsome reenactment of common family problems, and listened attentively as they explained Biblical solutions.  While praising aspects of African culture which outshine their native Brazil, they exposed ungodly traditions which parents need courage to break for their children’s good, such as pagan initiation rites.

Sitting among the attendees, I rejoiced at the wealth of insights this Godly older couple was imparting to younger parents.  I also thanked the Lord for the committee that has arisen to share my work in managing the father-daughter activities.  Baltazar sent out information about the seminar and registered RSVP’s; Boniface prepared the facility; Elídio coordinated the snack and passed around the sign-in sheet; Humilde moderated the event; and Neto typed out the year’s program to pass out.  As the fathers and daughters enjoy games, a picnic, a banquet, a dance, and a beach trip in 2025, this same team is committed to making each function a success.

The audience’s snickers confirmed that this is a realistic local scenario.  Why doesn’t the homeowner fix the issue when it’s just a little hole?  Because he doesn’t have money for new plastic sheeting. But then he has to pay for a whole new house!  Couldn’t he have found some way to patch the hole?  A plastic shopping bag?  A piece of scrap metal?  With the minds God gave us, we should think creatively to solve problems instead of merely worrying about them until doom overtakes us.

With this illustration, our speaker emphasized the importance of acting on troubles brewing within the family.  The sooner they are addressed, the easier they are to overcome.  Even when the perfect solution seems elusive, doing something is better than doing nothing.

Equipped with sound Biblical advice on raising their children, the couples at our seminar now face the challenge of putting it into practice.  They need our prayers!  May God give them the grace to resist their culture where necessary in order to build households that are centered on Christ — stable from the foundation to the roof.