Blog: Max Dawson
April 10, 2017
I am a car guy. Everyone who knows me well knows that. I was born in the shadow of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway; I was raised on race car fumes throughout my childhood. I like cars.
On this past Saturday, Lee and I went to the Mecum Classic Car Auction in Houston. David Fenner, one of our deacons at Dowlen Road Church, was with us. Like me, David is a car guy. Also with us was David’s young son, Nathan. Nathan is only three years old.
In the early afternoon, as we were walking past a 1970 Dodge Challenger, Nathan–on his own–got down on his knees and looked at the underside of the car. Does that surprise you? It might. But it shouldn’t for those who know this father and son well.
Nathan has seen his dad do that a dozen or more times. Nathan sometimes even gets his dad’s flashlight so he can see the underside better.
He was inspecting the underside of the car, looking for rust or accident damage. You would never want to buy a classic car without doing an inspection.
While Nathan may not know exactly what he is looking for, he is, nonetheless, imitating his dad.
As I saw Nathan do that on Saturday, the old folk proverb came to my mind: “Like father, like son.” It is common for little boys to imitate their dads.
THE FINAL WORD
I am writing just to dads now.
Is there a little boy who is watching you? Someone who is imitating your speech, your attitude and your actions? What does he see you doing? What does he hear from your mouth? What does he observe in how you treat his mommy?
So much of what he observes in your life will be seen in his life when he gets to be an adult. You may say, “My example may not be so good, but I train him right and I tell him what he is supposed to do.”
Really, Dad? Your example will say much more to him than your words ever will.
Dads are commanded to bring their sons up “in the nurture and admonition of Christ” (). There are few things that you can say or do in training your son that will be more important than the example you set before him.
Just remember this for today… a little boy is watching you!
They will watch you and imitate you even when you get down on your knees.
Blessings to all the dads who read this,
–Max