Before I got saved a lot of things happened. Part of the things that happened was my parents’ divorce and just not having a present father or a permanent male role model around. So, I think I searched for that kind of belonging and that kind of feeling from many things. Hip hop was one of those things that presented itself as as a good male role model or something to teach me about masculinity. It was obviously not good at all!
Seeing God as a faithful father
So, I think when I got saved and realised the kind of man that Jesus is and the kind of man that he calls all other men to be – and not only just Him calling us but seeing how God is a faithful father.
Seeing how God provides for His children. How God protects His children. How God loves His children and seeing how God disciplines His children because of His love, because He’s jealous for them. I think that’s one thing that has filled a really big hole in my heart. And I’ve just seen over the years how He’s grown my understanding of Him as a father. He’s grown my trust in Him as a father. He’s grown my dependency on Him as a father. And so that’s one area that I’m very aware of.
when there’s squad of us trying to look for one guy to be a role model it’s just impractical!
Finding a good, present father
Another thing that I think, in His mercy, He’s done is He’s brought around me godly men who are a present father to their children. Who are loving husbands to their wives. And so I think growing up in a community like mine, which most young black boys in South Africa grow up in, which is a township, it’s very rare to find present good role male role models. it’s not that they’re not there, they’re just few. So when there’s squad of us trying to look for one guy to be a role model it’s just impractical!
Learning to be a man
But I think when I became a Christian and I came around the Christian community I saw a lot of positive godly male role models. So I thought that that was another way of God just displaying his faithfulness to say “yo! Listen, you haven’t learned how to be a man when you were growing up. Here, I’m gonna teach you how to be that.”
I saw a lot of positive godly male role models. So I thought that that was another way of God just displaying his faithfulness
There’s a lot of godly brothers around who are older in the faith, older in marriage. Who are older in age, who have been good in that sense. And I think another thing is that these men that I mentioned earlier, where I’m from, it’s like “whoa! The guy’s gonna bailout anyway we know that.” But these dudes are still here! I’m like “okay!” So these guys are not going anywhere. They’re still investing and pouring their lives into me. So I think, knowing that, well, I want to be present.
