The Wondering Sheep: Episode 14 – Living the Christian Life
"I Need a Hero!"
March 18, 2026
That quote is from a tune used in the musical, “Footloose.” If you ever get a chance to see the show, it is worth your time. The music is great fun, and the story-line is worth thinking about in real life for several reasons (but that’s for a different article).
About 20 years ago, I put together a concert program for the North Orchestra based on the theme of “Heroes.” All the music had something to do with a hero or heroism. I asked all the kids to write down their most admired/favorite hero and why. I expected to say movie stars, singers, actors, people in history, and even politicians.
To my complete surprise, the vast majority of students all chose the same hero. They all said they admired this person, wanted to be like them, and so on. This person? Believe it or not, it was their father. That’s right, their dad. This was true even if their parents were divorced. A couple listed their mothers (all single parents), a couple more said a grandparent (who was raising them), and, yes, there was one politician, 1 movie star, and 1 singer.
What reasons did the students list? The father’s example; that their dads loved their mother; they wanted to be like dad in their approach to life. Some even thanked God for their fathers.
After talking to a principal or two, a couple of counselors, and some folks outside of the school district, the reasons for these answers became clear. You see them in their “why?” answers. The 80+ students I had that year in grades 9-12 were mostly from two parent homes. Their parents cared about them doing well, encouraged them, came to parent conferences, came to concerts and sporting events, gave them love and guidance–as well as discipline. Did you know that the odds of this group of students getting into behavioral trouble was less than half the rest of the school? Their grades were, on the average, high B’s up to a number of 4.0’s. Were they perfect? Of course not.
One other area in their lives placed them in a different category from the rest of the students in the school at the same time: 70% to 85% (depending on the year) of them were involved in church. Not just attending at times, but were INVOLVED and plugged into their family’s church life.
- From Day ONE take your child to church .
- By example show them throughout their life that Jesus is your Lord and Savior by your actions and words.
- Always show an interest in your Childs homework. Don’t be afraid to have them teach you what they’ve learned (if they can do that, it shows they know/understand what they should be learning).
- Don’t bury your nose In your phone when the kids are around and don’t allow them to spend too much time in digital media of any kind.
- Make sure they learn a musical instrument and/or sing in a choir with the goal, which you can use to remind them of serving God with the talents He has given them. If those habits last through H.S., their SAT and ACT scores will be 20-30 points higher on the math and verbal portions than their peers who didn’t
- Be an example in how you serve the church–just going to an occasional service doesn’t and being a consumer leaves out the essential part of living our faith: service!
- Teach them about money. They need to know that it all comes from God, and that they should put some of what you give them in the regular collection plate as well as the Sunday School offering plate. The habits you teach them when young will continue in the same way that creating new habits of service to our Savior’s church are hard to develop later. In other words, being in the habit helps!
- Discipline your children. If you don’t, there will be trouble. Remember that God disciplines and sets us to make us stronger.
- Always encourage the kids, especially when life is hard. Remember: you are Gods’ example to your children. Take them to the Lord in his Word with that encouragement!
I’d better stop, or I’ll keep thinking of more stuff to add. As you may guess, this is hardly a complete list of ideas/suggestions to bring up a child with faith and to become their hero. What we can always be reminded of is point to the hero we all need: Jesus first. We pray that Dad and Mom’s roles and values will reflect our Savior too.