Would you like to know one of the reasons behind the demise of ‘Promise
Keepers’? In my opinion, that organization started going down the tubes when it started to try to play to the women
in society. Would you like to know why more and more viewers are ‘turning off’ the Olympics, every four years?
Because those power brokers often shift their focus away from the broad, competitive spectrum and play towards the women in
society.
Do you sense a trend building in my column this month?
Would you like to know how out-of-wedlock births
(OOWs) are going to be made to decrease across the board? When the political power brokers and social planners get back to
basics and start to emphasize marriage between one man and one woman--again!
Now, my column is not aimed at the topic
of same-sex marriage. For me, that is a slam-dunk issue because it is WRONG! The Bible says its WRONG; God wrote the Bible;
I agree with God. Case Closed. No, my loyal reader; I’m more interested in the seemingly endless celebration of the
‘single life’ with children--and without marriage--being brought into the mix of our day-to-day lives as the solution
to all of our woes.
Sadly, there are some fatherhood groups who are buying in to this ‘bumper sticker’
mentality of ‘It Takes A Man To Be A Dad’.
I beg to differ.
It takes a HUSBAND to be a DADDY--IF
you want to do it God’s way!
IF you don’t, check out the local counseling programs, juvenile correction
facilities, or local prisons for the end result of a ‘casual carnal encounter.’ The bills CONTINUE to come due,
as local and state governments struggle to not only find a way to pay for such services; they have to bankroll the payroll
for the people to DEAL with these illegitimate children--and their wayward parents.
Job security because of overnight
carnality? Priceless!
READ IT AGAIN, PLEASE:
I didn’t stutter on that last line, so read it again.
Job
security because of overnight carnality? Priceless!
Now, you may wonder what kicked my keyboard this month.
Interestingly
enough, a PSA campaign by a group on fatherhood.
For weeks, the campaign has bugged me, and I couldn’t quite
put my finger on the ‘why’ of it--until recently. Marriage was being de-emphasized, but irresponsible procreation
was NOT being challenged.
Balderdash!
Brothers, let me break it down for you. Some of you came from single-parent
homes yourselves. You know the pain and problems that you went through--and may STILL be going through. Why ‘run around’
in the street, acting out sexually in a B-movie screenplay of life?
Before you bed her, you need to wed her.
To
break it down even further: Break the drama and CAN the excuses!
CHURCH HAS BEEN LETTING OOW ISSUE SLIDE:
A
few weeks back, I recall reading an article about how denominations that DO NOT put forth basic, biblical truths from the
pulpit and the pew are having more and more problems keeping their doors open. In other words, by catering to the social ‘whims’
instead of the biblical mandate, people don’t see the need to attend church.
Why go, if the folk in the pulpit
and the pew are acting JUST LIKE the folk you rub elbows with, each and every day? No wonder you see folk cutting their grass,
or jogging on Sunday morning--instead of going to church. To add insult to injury, some of these individuals and families
USED to go to church…until the Bible stopped being taught!
Can I get an AMEN from the cheap seats?
More
disturbing--watching the ‘show’ in the so-called ‘conservative’ churches, whereby ‘Member X’,
or ‘Minister X’ has a son/daughter caught up in a sexually compromising situation.
There is no shotgun
wedding. There is no public discipline in the church.
Instead, the matter is ‘swept under the rug’, and
everyone pretends the matter has been concluded. At that specific moment in time, the witness of the church weakens. There
would be no ‘baby showers’ for teenage girls at the schoolhouse, if the Pastor and congregation did their job
at the church house!
In case you haven’t been told--there is a TEN-generation curse on what the Bible calls ‘Bastards’--those
children born out-of-wedlock. The ONLY way that the curse be broken is the Bible way--John 3:16. However, there are still
consequences in play that MUST be handled. Nevertheless, it is ALWAYS better to take care of first things first brothers;
don’t BED her--until you WED her.
You may have steam coming out of your ears right about now, but you KNOW that
I’m throwing the matter right down the center of the tube today!
For those who are starting to get tight…keep
right on reading.
RISE OF THE HARDHEADED:
In truth, there are a lot of women who are 30 and under who have never
been pulled aside by their mothers--or another older woman--and taught the basics on male/female relations BEFORE puberty.
Some of these young women have children from past relationships and are very bitter. Others have children and like to pretend
that they came down out of the sky, rather than from some ‘…boot-knocking roll in the hay-hay’ (to paraphrase
Frank Sinatra). Others are single, but have been dating what they perceive to be a string of losers--in their view. One of
the bottom line principles these women NEED to be taught: “What you GIVE OFF, you will GET BACK!” To state it
from the biblical side of the street: “You REAP what you SOW!”
Brothers, do NOT get involved with a woman
who doesn’t know her OWN worth, or is NOT secure in herself--save for how she looks, or what she wears. You WILL pay,
and pay and pay and NOT get to see your children. It’s called ‘The American Child Support System’. Better
than Vegas, and the House ALWAYS WINS!
Now I know I’m going to get some bmail on this next point, but I have
to state it; MEN are not ‘scared off’ by intelligent, independent, and opinionated women, PROVIDED their status
is enhanced--from time to time--by their ability to LISTEN instead of TALK, TALK, TALK!
I have an article in my files
that cracks me up every time I read the title: “How To Talk Your Way Out Of A Job!” (Heh-Heh-Heh/LOL!) Let’s
be honest brothers, there ARE women--some of them in the church house--who have talked themselves OUT of a great potential
relationship by NOT listening to a man who was interested in them.
You see, there are many cases where a man KNOWS
that he is in the presence of the ‘right woman for life’, and goes to get the ring, the preacher, and the church.
However, the woman of his lifetime dreams TALKS her way out of a marriage proposal.
It’s simple: Men LEAD…Women
RESPOND. If a woman spends too much of her time thinking that she has to LEAD, and ‘fill in’ the ‘slow’
patches in their time together, she will TALK her way out of the relationship--and a proposal. Hint to the sisters reading
my column: if you have ‘tried’ everything else--try silence; it could result in something golden. Like a ring?
Face
it folks; until we get back to putting traditional marriage in place before procreation, our village will continue to resemble
a cemetery--rather than a sanctuary for families. A child CAN NOT be successfully raised--in far too many instances--until
they KNOW that their parents were committed to each other BEFORE that child was conceived. We presently have a juvenile justice
system awash with children who are from single homes who are ‘acting out’ because their parents didn’t make
a commitment to each other first--and the child second. If you DON’T believe me, go to your LOCAL juvenile court and
talk to those who work with troubled teens. At least 60 to 70 percent come from single parent homes!
If sisters want
better men, it starts with recognizing that there are already men who fill the bill. Sure, they are not exciting; MEN are
not exciting…but BOYS have their TOYS. Too many sisters have settled for ‘playing house’ rather than ‘building
a home’.
NEVER send, or ACCEPT a THUG to do a MAN’S JOB!
We should have learned THAT lesson from
watching the recent performance of the USA Men’s Olympic Basketball team.
But…I digress.
We USED
to have the equation right before we got ‘free’ in 1964. Have we gotten so ‘wise’ to think that throwing
away a successful blueprint would result in anything less than disaster?
It DOES take a HUSBAND to be a DADDY.
Any
other ‘solution’ is dancing on the fraying tightrope of selfishness.
MIKE RAMEY is the author of THE MANHOOD
LINE. A column written for MEN from a biblical, business, and common sense perspective. Emails welcomed from one and all to
manhoodline@yahoo.com. ©2004 Mike Ramey/Barnstorm Communications International. | | |
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