The Idea
How do boys become men? There is so little attention focused on the topic of being a great man or growing a boy into a great man. Rites of passage? Do you even hear about them any more?
Our culture has almost completely lost the importance of this time in a boy’s life. What can we expect from a culture that generally doesn’t hold much value for men or fathers. We are living within a largely a fatherless generation where Dads are often absent, addicted, or outright abusive.
They don't stay little like this forever!
Today’s sons are our future fathers and leaders. In history, boys were led into manhood by their fathers. They had to become men and learn what that meant at a much younger age. Now we have this odd and non-sensical “teenager” status that starts at 13 when manhood used to start, and seems to last through college, and for some even beyond college. I’m not up for that with my son.
My son Madison turned 13 a few months ago. My Dad was largely absent and addicted, so I’ve been anticipating this time in my own son’s life for quite a while. I don’t want him left out in the cold on his own. At the same, I don’t have a great point of reference to start from. I’m making this up as I go along too… It has always been important to me not to raise him in a bubble – speaking Christianese with a limited, cushioned view of the world. I want him to grow up appreciating the amazing country we live in, the opportunities and choices that are before him, and the gifts he has been given with the purpose of serving others. One piece of that means seeing a different part of the world, like Kenya. It means experiencing different churches to understand the core of who God is and what He’s doing in the world. It means having reasons and experiences matched to his beliefs and values. It means seizing small opportunities for growth and self-development now to discover how God has made him.
As part of his year of passage activities, my wife and I chose Kenya as the place to take him. Kenya is a completely different culture and standard of living. It is a place in great need of the experience and knowledge of God’s life defining love, and of human kindness.
We’re going on this trip in partnership with e3 Partners because they value a family serving on a mission together. Their Families Division is focused solely on the family experience. The leadership team for our trip is a family. Their family will be leading our family and others. I love that model. Part of my son’s journey is not just to discover who he is but also how his relationship with us grows as he grows.
I love my son. I love him enough to see him go through challenging experiences. I am sure that experiencing another country and culture won’t be easy, but I hope to see his compassion grow, an appreciation of his blessings and his brotherhood within mankind, his courage rise, his love for God overflow to others in need, and his actions reflect character of a man who puts others before him.
This is such a huge idea. So many are not focussed on the ‘big picture’ but rather more concerened with surviving thier children’s childhood. I aplaud you vigorously for taking such an unconventional yet very appropriate interest in your son’s life lessons and education. We’ll be praying for you both.
this is fantastic. i love the idea of a mission trip. why cannot we all help each other, even in this country of our own. we need only to travel to the other side of town to find people in need. this is a good example of putting ourselves at the service of others. instead of tithing, we need to give twenty percent of our gross to those in need until this economy gets level. thanks for your good work.
Thanks for the encouragement guys.
- Scott