The Responsibilities of a Loving Father

Fathers have several roles to play in a child's life. However, I believe that the primary role of any father is to delight in his children. A father is someone who has to believe in their children, and be proud of everything that their child does. A child needs to have a father that "delivers", in other words, a father in which they can count on. When a father tells a child "we're going to go to the park tomorrow", his children need to actually expect to go because their father is reliable and true to his word.

A devoted father isn't one who is referred to as a "disney-land dad". A truly good father isn't afraid to discipline his children. He needs to discipline them to educate the correct thing to do early in childhood. Weak fathers give in, and allow children to do whatever they want. Just because the children are happy and are able to push their father around, and claim to "love" their dad, does not make this a good fathering situation. A father needs to have authority over his children, as well as a sense of caring for their own well-being. A good father never accepts excuses from his children for behavior which is thought to have been inappropriate.

Obviously, there's a fine line between parents and children which is difficult to cross. It's nearly impossible to be friends with your child as well as a parent to them. Just know that parenting should come first, and eventually, you'll be friends for being such a great parent to your child.

A father must also be a good role model for his children. It's important to be a good role model because children almost always look up to their father, and make decisions in the future based on how their father would have handled it. The worse role model a father is to his children, the more likely the children are likely to grow up and be poor role models for their own children, as well as for their selves.

Caring fathers are always proud of their children. Kids can't function without their acknowledgment of their parents being proud of their children. Children need this positive encouragement, and parents are there to provide this.

There are many duties a father can perform for their children, however, if you can't provide everything, just love your children and everything else will fall into place.