What is the impact on the family
when the father is absent?
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Why should we even care?
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Stay tuned to meet
someone who's dedicated his life
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to remedying the ramifications
of "Father Absence"
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My name is Yvonne
Lewis and you're watching...
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Urban Report...
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Hello and welcome
to Urban Report...
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Today our guest is Ken Braswell,
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Founder and Executive Director
of Fathers Incorporated...
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Fathers Incorporated... a
not-for-profit Organization
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serves as the
Leader in the promotion of
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responsible
fatherhood and mentoring...
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This international,
national and local focus
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will raise the awareness
about, and combat the impact of,
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"Father Absence"
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Ken, welcome to Urban Report...
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Dr. Lewis, thank you so much...
it is a humbling pleasure
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to be in your presence today...
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Oh, well, that is so
kind of you to say...
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but we just praise the Lord
for all that you're doing...
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and I am so excited about your
work and your Organization...
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and you and I
have talked for really,
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probably for almost a year,
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and this is the first time
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that I've been able to
have you on Urban Report...
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so it is my honor
to have you here...
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Thank you for taking the
time out to be with us...
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No, thank you...
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Tell us a little bit
about you first of all...
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Who is Ken Braswell?
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You know, I'd like to start off
by saying, "I'm a child of God"
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I walk every moment of my
life in obedience to my Lord...
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I don't make any
decisions, I don't take a step,
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I don't utter a word,
I don't think a thought
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without asking the
Father first whether or not
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it is something
that is in His will...
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and then closely after
that... I'm a loving husband,
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I love my wife dearly...
and then I'm a father...
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of children and
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a servant to my Community...
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and I think that that
describes me in a nutshell
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and all of the other
things that are laced in my
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resume are good things to show
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for people to get a
sense of what I do...
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if you ask me who I
am... that's who I am...
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That's wonderful...
where did you grow up?
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I grew up in
Brooklyn, New York, Oh!
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my mother, at the
age of 18 years old,
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left Pinetops, North
Carolina, with me in tow...
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I was about 2 or 3 years
old when she came to Brooklyn...
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she came with
two of her cousins...
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who also had children and
you know, back in those days,
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when young women had children,
particularly in the south
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of the United
States... oftentimes,
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they had to leave...
and many of them went north
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and my mother was one of those,
and she struggled for the vast
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majority of her life,
raising myself as well as...
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later on... some years
later, my brother and sister,
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and so, Brooklyn, New
York, is where I call "Home"
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but I live,
currently in Albany, New York,
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which is about 140 miles
north of New York City...
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Okay, so your mom was
a single mother, then,
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raising her children?
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Yes, she was...
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And is that what propelled
you into this whole work
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of the impact
of "Father Absence"
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what propelled you to do this...
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this work? You
know, I think, as I began
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to do this work...
I made the connection
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between my mother
being a single mother
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but the genesis of me
getting into this work
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had to do with
my own experiences
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as a young boy...
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struggling to be a man...
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and trying to figure out
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how to be a father...
at a very young age...
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I had my first
child at 17 years old...
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closely after that... I found
myself in my first marriage...
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that lasted...
you know... shorter...
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than the courtship did...
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for many years when
my daughter was born
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her mother and I were
like... oil and water...
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and we could not find a way...
to find ourselves together
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and quickly became
divorced and separated...
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and I spent a large
part of the early days
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of my child's
life... estranged from her...
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and then it was the
birth of my second child...
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that, God placed in my
life, to turn me around
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and I believe, that was
the emphasis for impetus
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for the trajectory of my
life because she literally
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awoke the spirit
in me that said that,
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"You have to be a
different kind of man...
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you have to really
figure out how you're going to
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adhere to your
responsibilities as a father
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you can no longer be the
selfish man that I was...
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at the time... you
now have a responsibility
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that's not yours...
that actually belongs to me
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as my new-born child...
" and that really changed,
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my life... my daughter...
who is now 13-years-old
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really turned my life around,
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she caused me to
reconnect with my first child...
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that has happened over time
and that relationship is still
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as I call, "under construction"
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but we love each other dearly,
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we talk more than
we've ever talked...
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she has given me an
awesome grandchild...
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and it was that experience...
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and then finding
myself in Family Court
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with my second
daughter and her mother
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struggling to find a way
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to parent our child effectively,
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given that we
weren't together anymore...
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You have given some
really interesting points here
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because... I want
to go back for a second
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because there are so
many young guys... like 17...
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like you were...
that find themselves
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"Fathers" they
have sired babies...
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but they're not
actually being fathers...
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they're not
parenting these children...
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so, part of it... I
think... and you tell me...
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but part of it is because
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they didn't have fathers,
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so they don't really
know what a father does...
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what does a
father really look like?
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what is a part of
the parenting process,
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and I think it's because
they don't know themselves...
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how to be parents...
so that's number one...
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I think... everything in Society
propels you towards sexuality...
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but it doesn't propel you
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toward the consequences
of that sexuality...
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so, you find yourself...
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you're seventeen...
and you've got a baby...
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and a baby-mama
that is on your case,
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and so you find yourself
really, trying to deal with that
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would you speak
to that for a second?
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Yeah, I often tell young
men, young boys when I'm talking
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to them... that the
measurement of manhood
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is your ability to be able
to be responsible and sustain
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all of the acts that
you have engaged in...
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as a boy... and
so, when you become
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a father as a boy...
your manhood is measured by
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how well you adhere
to the responsibilities
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of being a
father... and oftentimes,
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when we are youth, and
this is the consequence
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you talk about consequence
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and I speak a lot
about this to them as well...
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you know, when you, as a youth
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engage in adult actions...
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adult actions cause
adult consequences...
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Hmmm... hmmm...
when you are a youth...
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you don't have the
ability and the wherewithal...
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to match up with the
adult consequences...
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Having sex, having
children, having to pay rent,
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having to get a job,
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those are adult activities
that have consequences
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and when you are a child...
you are ill-equipped to do that
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and that is the problem
for many of our youth today...
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they have engaged
in adult activities
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that have adult consequences,
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and they are still
youth and don't have
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the resources and
abilities to be able to adhere
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to those responsibilities...
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That is so true... and
you know, when we look at the
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the 10 Commandments...
and we look at the commandment
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that says, "Thou
shalt not commit adultery"
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it's not because
God is trying to...
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to, you know, just kind
of suppress your pleasure
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it's a protection...
it's a protective mechanism
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set into place that
actually protects you from doing
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things that you're
not prepared to do...
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and so, you know, I think that
that is such an important point
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that you're
doing adult activities
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as a youth... as a child...
and you're not prepared for
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the adult
consequences that is so true...
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So... so... oh... go ahead...
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It's...
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If you just take the
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story of Adam... as a
footprint there was a reason
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that God spent so
much time with Adam...
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in talking to him
about his purpose...
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and talking to him
about his placement
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and talking to
him about his position
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and talking about his...
the work that he had to do
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in Eden...
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before He gave him Eve...
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and all of that
preparation... for Adam
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was to get
prepared for his helpmate...
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which is the process...
as a boy... you get prepared
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by the image of a
man who teaches you
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how to do the things so
that when you do engage...
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you have the
wherewithal to be able to attend
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to those responsibilities
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so it wasn't until he was
clear in understanding that
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that God gave him Eve...
and it wasn't until after that
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that... they have children,
and we missed that point
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in the process,
you know, of being boys
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and then being girls and
then being husbands and wives...
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and then having children...
we jumped over the whole process
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the rights of the children...
and we expect for everything
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to be right...
Oh, come on now...
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that's some
wonderful stuff there...
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you gave a lot of P's too...
I love that, you know, that...
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the
alliteration... I love that...
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Preparation on
a... tell us the P's,
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Preparation, Purpose, Yes...
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Sex, Commitment,
all of those things
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God gave Adam, you
know, before He gave him
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the responsibility,
you know, of being a "Papa"
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Yes... and the
process... it is a process...
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that we tend to want to
skip, you are so right...
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we tend to want
to skip the process
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and go right to the
pleasure, Right... right...
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go right to the pleasure...
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forget the
preparation, forget the process,
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let's just deal
with the pleasure
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and that... that is not God's
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intention... again...
what God has set into play...
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here... it's for our
protection, another P...
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it's for our
protection, so it's not just Him
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trying to be
arbitrary and saying...
00:11:24.09\00:11:26.70
"Well, don't do that...
" No, don't do it because
00:11:26.74\00:11:29.61
you're not ready... for that,
00:11:29.65\00:11:32.31
it's not part of
my plan for you... "
00:11:32.35\00:11:35.19
so all of these
things are in place...
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and I love that
idea about Adam...
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and God spending time with
Adam preparing him for his mate,
00:11:40.93\00:11:45.15
that is so important
because a lot of times...
00:11:45.18\00:11:48.94
a lot of the guys and
women now... of today...
00:11:48.97\00:11:52.69
I have sons...
and my sons tell me,
00:11:52.72\00:11:54.59
"Mom, women aren't
like they used to be...
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they're not really necessarily
looking for commitment either"
00:11:57.47\00:12:00.39
Right... so, it's like...
00:12:00.42\00:12:01.45
there's a whole
different mentality...
00:12:01.49\00:12:04.00
among a lot of young people...
00:12:04.04\00:12:06.32
and I'm not trying to
indict all young people
00:12:06.36\00:12:08.42
but I'm saying that
among a lot of people period...
00:12:08.46\00:12:12.70
there is this cavalier
attitude toward sexuality
00:12:12.74\00:12:16.91
and toward having children
and who are just being out there
00:12:16.95\00:12:21.82
and hanging
out... doing what's fun
00:12:21.85\00:12:23.80
without dealing with the process
00:12:23.83\00:12:25.71
and the preparation...
so, your mom... had you...
00:12:25.75\00:12:30.81
raised you... you
had your child at 17...
00:12:30.85\00:12:34.93
and then you
had this other child
00:12:34.97\00:12:36.97
and through his other
child you became more aware
00:12:37.01\00:12:40.86
of what you were to
do... as a parent...
00:12:40.89\00:12:43.68
She opened your eyes to
the importance of parenting...
00:12:43.71\00:12:48.00
what is the outcome
00:12:48.03\00:12:52.39
of families...
that you can see...
00:12:52.43\00:12:54.96
what are some
of the consequences
00:12:54.99\00:12:57.49
of the absent father?
00:12:57.52\00:12:58.80
You know, it's different for
00:12:58.83\00:13:02.87
both boys and girls...
00:13:02.91\00:13:05.71
there are some similarities
in terms of outcomes...
00:13:05.74\00:13:08.72
they don't fare
so well in school...
00:13:08.76\00:13:11.55
they struggle with self-esteem,
00:13:11.59\00:13:13.97
they engage in, what Society
calls... deviant behaviors...
00:13:14.00\00:13:18.60
either drug abuse or
alcoholism and violence
00:13:18.63\00:13:23.34
children... tend to not have
a grounded "Spirit Place" for
00:13:23.38\00:13:29.62
spirituality... to be
a part of their lives,
00:13:29.65\00:13:32.66
I have a friend... that
I'm going through with him now
00:13:32.69\00:13:36.45
in helping him
understand how important it is
00:13:36.49\00:13:40.26
to have a
relationship with God...
00:13:40.30\00:13:42.44
and I can give you all
the statistics and research
00:13:42.48\00:13:47.00
in the world...
but the reality is
00:13:47.04\00:13:48.73
when the father
gets up on Sunday morning
00:13:48.76\00:13:51.62
or Saturday
morning... whenever time
00:13:51.65\00:13:53.80
your faith calls you...
to be obedient to God...
00:13:53.84\00:13:56.71
the family
usually more than likely
00:13:56.75\00:13:58.85
gets up with him...
and so, when you don't have
00:13:58.89\00:14:01.69
fathers in the household...
primarily for these children
00:14:01.72\00:14:05.93
there is no
guidance... there is no way
00:14:05.97\00:14:08.93
and no mechanism
for them to really...
00:14:08.97\00:14:11.90
be able to trust God
00:14:11.94\00:14:14.12
my wife said to me...
before we got married...
00:14:14.16\00:14:17.54
and I never understood this
concept until she said so...
00:14:17.57\00:14:20.94
she said that
00:14:20.97\00:14:22.61
what helped her understand
00:14:22.65\00:14:26.04
how I was her
husband is when she realized
00:14:26.08\00:14:30.48
she could follow
God through me...
00:14:30.51\00:14:33.37
she said to me
that that is the order
00:14:33.41\00:14:36.24
God, husband, wife...
00:14:36.27\00:14:38.71
but in order for the wife
and family to be in alignment
00:14:38.75\00:14:42.33
and be in order
with God's calling...
00:14:42.36\00:14:44.73
that the wife has to be able
to see God through her husband,
00:14:44.77\00:14:48.90
All right...
because if it's off path...
00:14:48.93\00:14:51.22
the wife and the
families... are off path...
00:14:51.25\00:14:53.50
and so, that... therein lies
00:14:53.53\00:14:55.33
probably one of
our biggest problems
00:14:55.37\00:14:57.83
when men... are not
in their rightful place
00:14:57.86\00:15:00.80
with respect to
their families...
00:15:00.83\00:15:03.27
Yes, there is a divine order
00:15:03.31\00:15:06.81
and we want... many times
00:15:06.84\00:15:10.27
the woman ends up being
kind of the spiritual head
00:15:10.30\00:15:13.79
of the household... but
the husband is to be that
00:15:13.82\00:15:17.24
priest of the household...
he is the one that is to call
00:15:17.28\00:15:20.53
his family to worship...
he is the one that is to
00:15:20.56\00:15:24.37
take them to
Church on Sabbath morning
00:15:24.40\00:15:27.06
and make sure that
that family is in alignment
00:15:27.10\00:15:31.68
with the divine plan...
00:15:31.71\00:15:33.37
so, that's a
very interesting point
00:15:33.40\00:15:36.60
so your wife really
brought to you... that concept
00:15:36.63\00:15:40.44
of that priesthood...
00:15:40.47\00:15:42.98
that the husband
is to be the priest...
00:15:43.02\00:15:46.20
and to lead his
family to the alter...
00:15:46.24\00:15:49.39
that's very, very important...
00:15:49.43\00:15:51.65
And what that
did... at that moment
00:15:51.68\00:15:54.22
when I understood
that... it laid upon my heart
00:15:54.25\00:15:58.23
a different kind
of responsibility...
00:15:58.26\00:16:01.52
that if I wanted my
wife and my children...
00:16:01.55\00:16:06.23
to follow, be
obedient, be humble
00:16:06.26\00:16:09.51
to the calling of
God... that the responsibility
00:16:09.55\00:16:13.14
of my life... to be in
line and to have a relationship
00:16:13.18\00:16:16.67
with God was
critically important
00:16:16.71\00:16:19.12
if I was the man... I said I was
00:16:19.16\00:16:21.50
and so it forces me to
stay in like-step with my God
00:16:21.54\00:16:27.03
if I want my family to also be
in like-step with Him as well...
00:16:27.06\00:16:30.82
how can I expect
something of them
00:16:30.85\00:16:32.43
that I don't expect of myself...
00:16:32.47\00:16:33.92
Ah, excellent, excellent...
so leading by example
00:16:33.96\00:16:37.98
Absolutely... that's the key...
00:16:38.01\00:16:39.84
that's the key... we
have a video of you and
00:16:39.88\00:16:45.51
kind of your development...
would you set it up for us
00:16:45.55\00:16:48.72
and tell us what it's about...
00:16:48.75\00:16:50.89
Yeah, you know, I
was just... you know...
00:16:50.93\00:16:53.58
I often... I'm very
reflective, I kind of...
00:16:53.61\00:16:56.50
I look at my life and
I try to watch the steps
00:16:56.53\00:16:59.35
that God has ordered for
me and sometimes I have to
00:16:59.38\00:17:02.50
motivate myself
because I'm probably
00:17:02.54\00:17:05.46
my harshest
critic with respect to...
00:17:05.50\00:17:08.35
am I doing as much as
I can do? Can I do more?
00:17:08.38\00:17:11.70
And my wife often tells me...
"Well, sometimes you got to
00:17:11.73\00:17:14.37
stop and sit back and look
at what you've accomplished... "
00:17:14.40\00:17:17.37
you got to start telling people
and showing people your walk
00:17:17.41\00:17:20.34
people have to see
that you were at Place A
00:17:20.38\00:17:24.62
and now you're at Place B
and you've been at C and D and E
00:17:24.66\00:17:28.53
and you can walk
through those and so,
00:17:28.57\00:17:30.53
I love putting videos
together, I have a heart
00:17:30.57\00:17:33.84
for the creative process...
and something just said,
00:17:33.88\00:17:36.27
"You know what... you got
a computer and a hard drive
00:17:36.30\00:17:38.65
full of those kinds of images...
00:17:38.69\00:17:40.02
put something together
that will speak to your heart
00:17:40.05\00:17:43.29
when you're not feeling
adequate with respect to
00:17:43.32\00:17:46.52
the purpose that
God has laid on you...
00:17:46.56\00:17:47.93
Oh great... well let's take
a look at this video right now.
00:17:47.96\00:17:51.26
Music... One Man's Journey
00:17:51.30\00:17:58.04
by Kenneth
Braswell... music playing...
00:17:58.08\00:18:05.79
music playing...
00:18:05.83\00:18:09.98
with Hilary Clinton
00:18:10.01\00:18:15.75
Music playing...
00:18:15.79\00:18:21.49
The biggest
question I had for myself was
00:18:21.53\00:18:23.60
whether I would call him
"Dad" or Mr. Applewhite...
00:18:23.64\00:18:26.50
my internal conversation
told me if I called him "Dad"
00:18:26.53\00:18:30.21
I would be giving up
something of myself...
00:18:30.25\00:18:34.47
I'm not a perfect
man... I don't subscribe
00:18:34.51\00:18:39.53
at any point in my life
to be perfect, you know,
00:18:39.56\00:18:42.71
I've learned a lot
from my mistakes...
00:18:42.75\00:18:44.72
I've got a lot of
light... and I get a lot more...
00:18:44.76\00:18:47.61
but I continued to move forward
and I'd get up every morning
00:18:47.64\00:18:51.27
I'm trying to be a better man,
trying to be a better father,
00:18:51.30\00:18:54.43
trying to be a better partner,
trying to be a better friend...
00:18:54.46\00:18:57.55
trying to be a better Christian
00:18:57.59\00:18:58.97
and that's all I
have to give to the world
00:18:59.01\00:19:01.46
music playing...
00:19:01.49\00:19:14.67
Met His Father at Age 22...
00:19:22.65\00:19:26.30
as a child... and
sometimes we make mistakes,
00:19:26.33\00:19:29.00
sometimes, we make
big mistakes, you know...
00:19:29.04\00:19:31.56
sometimes women make mistakes,
sometimes they make big mistakes
00:19:31.60\00:19:35.69
it is critical that fathers
be placed back into the paradigm
00:19:35.73\00:19:39.79
of family development...
you just have to make sure that
00:19:39.82\00:19:42.62
the family structure...
that exists for our children
00:19:42.65\00:19:45.48
are safe for them...
and that's first, foremost
00:19:45.51\00:19:48.69
and paramount
in the work that...
00:19:48.72\00:19:50.40
in the work that we do...
00:19:50.44\00:19:52.00
NBA Star Dwayne Wade...
White House Champion of change
00:19:52.04\00:19:54.92
in Orlando, Florida...
00:19:54.96\00:19:56.49
We want to be able
to take this chance
00:19:56.52\00:19:58.96
to begin to build the
capacity of these barbers
00:19:58.99\00:20:01.55
to be productive...
information dissemination points
00:20:01.58\00:20:05.21
for the Communities
that they serve in...
00:20:05.25\00:20:07.41
This work is about
wanting to see the beauty...
00:20:07.44\00:20:10.69
but not wanting to
deal with the thorns...
00:20:10.72\00:20:12.72
and for fathers... in this work,
00:20:12.75\00:20:15.28
we have become in
essence the thorns...
00:20:15.32\00:20:17.98
It's very difficult
to heal someone else
00:20:18.02\00:20:20.11
when you're wounded...
00:20:20.15\00:20:21.23
We have a situation where
one third of US-born children
00:20:21.27\00:20:26.00
wake up each morning
00:20:26.03\00:20:27.31
without their biological
fathers in their homes...
00:20:27.34\00:20:30.01
This is what you all just did...
00:20:30.04\00:20:32.24
this is the king of
the freaking jungle...
00:20:32.28\00:20:35.23
he has dominion over everything,
let the jungle hear you roar...
00:20:35.26\00:20:40.00
Roar... roar... roar...
so get up off your seats...
00:20:40.04\00:20:47.03
and let me hear
you roar... ROAR...
00:20:47.07\00:20:49.01
let me hear you roar...
00:20:49.04\00:20:50.77
And when they were
asking Jesus what is it that
00:20:50.81\00:20:52.81
you're going to do... he
kneeled down in the sand...
00:20:52.85\00:20:58.38
and he wrote
something in the sand...
00:20:58.42\00:21:01.36
and the Bible doesn't tell
us what he wrote in the sand...
00:21:01.39\00:21:06.84
but he raised up to say...
00:21:06.87\00:21:08.76
"Let anyone without
sin... cast the first stone... "
00:21:08.80\00:21:12.80
and so... a lot of
you... have done a lot of things
00:21:12.84\00:21:16.81
in your life...
and you're waiting for
00:21:16.84\00:21:18.54
written confirmation...
and for someone to sit down
00:21:18.57\00:21:21.71
and write something
in the life of yours
00:21:21.74\00:21:24.69
in the sands of your life...
to let you know as you said
00:21:24.73\00:21:29.10
that you're not alone...
00:21:29.14\00:21:30.21
and there's a
place for you to go...
00:21:30.24\00:21:32.33
and the work continues...
00:21:32.37\00:21:36.81
music...
00:21:36.84\00:21:45.46
Wow! thank you so much
for sharing that with us...
00:21:45.50\00:21:49.65
that is really...
it kind of encapsulates
00:21:49.69\00:21:52.32
what you're
doing... tell us before...
00:21:52.36\00:21:55.87
because the time has
just really quickly gone by...
00:21:55.91\00:21:58.74
we have about five minutes
left, tell us a bit about
00:21:58.77\00:22:02.36
Fathers Incorporated...
what's your mission...
00:22:02.39\00:22:04.81
what's your
vision... that kind of thing...
00:22:04.84\00:22:07.23
you know... we have...
God set a new mission for us
00:22:07.26\00:22:11.03
about two years
ago... and that was to become
00:22:11.06\00:22:14.16
the number one promoter
of responsible fatherhood
00:22:14.19\00:22:17.30
and
mentoring... around the world
00:22:17.34\00:22:19.40
and what that calls us to
do is to really do the things
00:22:19.44\00:22:22.49
that elevate this conversation
of the importance of
00:22:22.53\00:22:25.55
responsible
fatherhood... and to eradicate
00:22:25.59\00:22:27.97
the outcome of "Father Absence"
00:22:28.00\00:22:30.00
and
fatherlessness... we do that in
00:22:30.03\00:22:33.68
curriculum development and
programming... public speaking
00:22:33.72\00:22:37.20
social media... I
might do a lot of writing...
00:22:37.24\00:22:40.30
speaking, talking... whatever
God sets on my heart to do
00:22:40.34\00:22:43.51
to elevate this conversation...
00:22:43.55\00:22:45.69
is the task of
Fathers Incorporated...
00:22:45.72\00:22:49.01
just not too long ago...
we kind of re-adjusted...
00:22:49.05\00:22:53.11
me and
re-adjusted our Organization
00:22:53.15\00:22:55.80
and it has really
put us on the path
00:22:55.84\00:22:57.73
to really begin to do this work
in Faith-based Institutions...
00:22:57.76\00:23:02.57
He said to me...
not too long ago...
00:23:02.60\00:23:05.65
"Kenny, people will see your
work as the work of the world
00:23:05.69\00:23:10.90
the purpose that
I've laid on your heart...
00:23:10.93\00:23:13.09
has absolutely nothing
to do with the world...
00:23:13.13\00:23:15.31
it has to do with the
building of the Kingdom...
00:23:15.35\00:23:17.67
and therefore... you
have absolutely no boundaries
00:23:17.70\00:23:19.96
when it comes to this earth... "
00:23:19.99\00:23:21.15
and so, as you can imagine,
00:23:21.18\00:23:24.23
hearing that, from my
Father, telling me that
00:23:24.27\00:23:27.76
this work that I do...
is about Kingdom-building...
00:23:27.79\00:23:31.25
it's something that we
are now in the process of
00:23:31.28\00:23:34.68
taking a step back and planning
exactly how we're going to move
00:23:34.72\00:23:39.29
forward... to
spread this word...
00:23:39.33\00:23:41.99
at every corner of the earth...
00:23:42.03\00:23:44.62
Wow! that is
absolutely wonderful...
00:23:44.66\00:23:47.77
this is a work...
that is so critical...
00:23:47.81\00:23:50.76
one of the things that I see
and it's just so disheartening
00:23:50.80\00:23:55.48
is the erosion of the family...
00:23:55.51\00:23:58.52
there is not that
central... that figure...
00:23:58.56\00:24:03.55
that father-head of the home
00:24:03.59\00:24:06.06
of the household...
it's so often absent...
00:24:06.09\00:24:08.71
and so... if we
don't address that
00:24:08.75\00:24:11.65
and address it with
the spiritual paradigm...
00:24:11.68\00:24:15.58
we are really, just,
floundering so your work...
00:24:15.61\00:24:19.51
in getting this word
out... is critical...
00:24:19.55\00:24:22.31
tell us a little bit
about the mentoring...
00:24:22.34\00:24:25.11
that Fathers
Incorporated does...
00:24:25.15\00:24:27.47
We are engaged
00:24:27.51\00:24:33.15
in a couple of things right now
00:24:33.19\00:24:34.54
I said a few minutes
ago... we are developing
00:24:34.57\00:24:38.17
what we're describing as a
Fatherhood Ministry Curriculum
00:24:38.20\00:24:41.99
and that is to go into churches
00:24:42.02\00:24:44.05
to begin to help them establish
a work that points directly
00:24:44.08\00:24:48.67
at fathers...
oftentimes, in many churches
00:24:48.71\00:24:51.59
you'll see Men's Ministries...
00:24:51.63\00:24:52.81
but Men's
Ministries don't directly
00:24:52.85\00:24:54.94
deal with the
issue of Fatherhood...
00:24:54.97\00:24:57.00
and all men's ministries
don't, all men aren't fathers
00:24:57.03\00:25:00.29
and so, in our churches,
we have to begin to start
00:25:00.33\00:25:03.56
focusing our Leaders
and our Congregations
00:25:03.59\00:25:06.17
on this issue of Fatherhood...
and it's not just about
00:25:06.21\00:25:09.59
talking to the fathers
about their responsibility
00:25:09.63\00:25:12.27
of fatherhood... but it's
also talking to our mothers
00:25:12.31\00:25:14.92
about the critical
importance that they have...
00:25:14.95\00:25:17.81
in bringing fathers
to their children...
00:25:17.84\00:25:20.14
whether they live
together or not...
00:25:20.18\00:25:22.83
and then the last piece of it is
00:25:22.87\00:25:25.46
ensuring that we connect
our earthly responsibility
00:25:25.49\00:25:29.32
of being fathers to
the spiritual reality...
00:25:29.35\00:25:33.07
that we all have a Father...
00:25:33.11\00:25:35.30
and that He has said
that even in the midst of not
00:25:35.34\00:25:37.95
having a father...
I am your father...
00:25:37.98\00:25:40.34
and that is something...
and a connection that we must
00:25:40.37\00:25:42.99
make to people so that
when a biological father
00:25:43.03\00:25:46.82
is not in your lives nor
is a positive role model...
00:25:46.85\00:25:49.76
they know enough to get
down on their knees and pray
00:25:49.79\00:25:52.62
to the heavenly father for
answers to their circumstances.
00:25:52.66\00:25:55.56
Oh, that's wonderful...
that is wonderful...
00:25:55.60\00:25:58.37
In 30 seconds...
what would you say
00:25:58.40\00:26:02.30
what would you
say to that young man
00:26:02.34\00:26:06.17
that wants to be a better
father but just doesn't know
00:26:06.21\00:26:09.30
where to start...
what would you say?
00:26:09.34\00:26:11.30
I would say,
"Start with your heart...
00:26:11.33\00:26:13.23
listen to your heart...
put yourself in the shoes of
00:26:13.26\00:26:19.05
that child and say to yourself
00:26:19.09\00:26:20.67
'what would you want me
to do in the same situation'
00:26:20.71\00:26:23.89
and then if you can't get
an answer from that question,
00:26:23.93\00:26:27.08
the next question should
be one that we hear often
00:26:27.12\00:26:30.40
but we don't pay enough
attention to... and that is...
00:26:30.44\00:26:33.02
'what would Jesus do
in the same situation. '"
00:26:33.06\00:26:35.94
That's wonderful...
00:26:35.98\00:26:37.47
thank you so much
for being with us...
00:26:37.50\00:26:40.09
we didn't even get to
touch on what happened
00:26:40.13\00:26:43.34
when you met your
dad... at age 22...
00:26:43.38\00:26:45.83
and I'm sure that our Viewers
would like to know that...
00:26:45.86\00:26:48.09
plus I know that
there are going to be
00:26:48.13\00:26:50.00
on-going activities and
events that Fathers Incorporated
00:26:50.04\00:26:55.60
is sponsoring with love...
00:26:55.63\00:26:57.87
for our Viewers to
know more about that...
00:26:57.91\00:27:00.25
your website again...
00:27:00.29\00:27:01.76
give us your website...
00:27:01.79\00:27:03.11
Our website is www.
Fathersincorporated. com
00:27:03.14\00:27:08.88
we are on Facebook...
00:27:08.92\00:27:10.79
our Twitter
handle is Fathersincorp
00:27:10.83\00:27:14.08
if you Google
us... you will find us...
00:27:14.11\00:27:17.29
I think when you
Google Fathers Incorporated
00:27:17.32\00:27:19.37
you'll probably load it up
on the first 10 or 15 pages...
00:27:19.41\00:27:22.66
so you have no
excuse for not finding us...
00:27:22.69\00:27:25.14
That's
wonderful... thank you so much
00:27:25.17\00:27:27.54
and we hope to
have you back again...
00:27:27.57\00:27:29.72
Thank you Dr. Lewis
and God bless you...
00:27:29.75\00:27:31.86
God bless you too Brother Ken...
00:27:31.90\00:27:34.09
Thank you so much for tuning in,
00:27:34.13\00:27:36.32
we are just so
blessed to have you
00:27:36.36\00:27:38.48
and we just pray that
00:27:38.51\00:27:39.63
this information
will be of use to you...
00:27:39.66\00:27:42.02
share it with
people that you know...
00:27:42.06\00:27:44.41
let them know that
there are Organizations
00:27:44.44\00:27:47.47
out there that
can really help them
00:27:47.50\00:27:49.51
with parenting and being
good fathers and good mothers
00:27:49.54\00:27:53.79
because we need
that desperately...
00:27:53.82\00:27:56.11
Join us next time...
00:27:56.14\00:27:57.78
we know... it just
wouldn't be the same...
00:27:57.81\00:28:00.12
without you...
00:28:00.16\00:28:02.14