Struggling to be the spiritual leader my family needs | DadHQ

Struggling to be the spiritual leader my family needs

3d ago1 min read

Guys I'm being real here. I want to raise my kids in faith but I feel like a hypocrite half the time. I'm preaching about honesty and patience but I lose my cool over spilled milk or I fudge the truth on my taxes. My 8 year old called me out last week for getting angry at another driver and then saying a prayer that night. How do you actually walk the walk and not just talk it? I don't want my kids to see faith as something that's just for church on Sunday.

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Comments(7)

RRichardRegular1d ago

Real talk though - I think a lot of us feel like that. You're aware enough to see where you fall short, which actually puts you ahead of a lot of people. The fact that you care this much about being a good example matters.

BBrandonNew Dad2d ago

The hypocrisy thing is real. I struggle with it too. But I've learned that showing my kids I'm imperfect and working on myself is actually more powerful than pretending I have it all figured out.

SStevenRegular2d ago

Have you thought about doing faith stuff together as a family? Like not in a preachy way but just experiencing it together. Sometimes that helps more than trying to be the authority figure.

MMike T.New Dad3d ago

Three kids here and I've realized spiritual leadership doesn't mean being perfect, it means being willing to admit when you mess up and try again. That's the real lesson for them anyway.

NNathanNew Dad3d ago

I'm still figuring out what kind of dad I want to be, so I respect you being honest about the gap between what you preach and what you practice. That self-awareness is actually pretty strong leadership.

RRussell D.Regular3d ago

Being real here, nobody's perfect at this. My kids have called me out for losing patience after I just talked about staying calm, and honestly that's taught me more than if I got it right every time.

DDerekRegular2d ago

Kids don't need a perfect spiritual leader. They need someone authentic who's trying. You're already doing better than you think if you're asking these questions.