Fatherless Homes

After watching the movie "Thirteen" tonight, I knew I had to write about it.

The movie is about a 13 year old girl named Tracy Freeland. A young adolescent growing up in a fatherless home. When she befriends Evie - the most popular girl in school - she gets dragged into a world full of drugs, sex, alcohol and crime.

In the movie it becomes obvious how much she longs for her father, for his attention. Since she's not getting it, she turns to other things to get attention.

Sadly, it's becoming a trend in the world for fathers to abandon their families. The statistics are heart wrenching. The effects on the children are huge, although we try to deny this. In today's society there's no longer a stigma attached to divorce. It's considered normal to give up on your marriage as soon as it gets tough. All of this can be traced back to the years when feminism started coming up and we let God slip away in our lives.

Let's look at some of the statistics:

=> An estimated 24.7 million children (36.3%) live absent their biological father.

=> Children in single-parent families are two to three times as likely as children in two-parent families to have emotional and behavioral problems.

=> Three out of four teenage suicides occur in households where a parent has been absent.

=> Adolescent females between the ages of 15 and 19 years reared in homes without fathers are significantly more likely to engage in premarital sex than adolescent females reared in homes with both a mother and a father.

=> With the increasing number of premarital births and a continuing high divorce rate, the proportion of children living with just one parent rose from 9 percent in 1960 to 28 percent in 1996. Currently, 57.7 percent of all black children, 31.8 percent of all Hispanic children, and 20.9 percent of all white children are living in single-parent homes.

=>The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services states, "Fatherless children are at a dramatically greater risk of drug and alcohol abuse"

The list continues here => Fatherless Statistics

These statistics are absolutely horrible. Since people have started to deny God, the divorce statistics have skyrocketed. They don't feel they can be held accountable by anybody, let alone God.

The Bible is clear about divorce:

Deuteronomy 22:19 - They shall fine him a hundred shekels of silver and give them to the girl's father, because this man has given an Israelite virgin a bad name. She shall continue to be his wife; he must not divorce her as long as he lives.

Malachi 2:16 - "I hate divorce," says the LORD God of Israel, "and I hate a man's covering himself with violence as well as with his garment," says the LORD Almighty. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith.

Luke 16:18 - Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery, and the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

1 Corinthians 7:10-11 - To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband. But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife.

Of course, the basis of marriage is friendship. But another thing that is also very important, is that we embrace our God given roles. Men are supposed to be the providers and leaders of the family, while the women are supposed to be the heart.

When feminism came up, a lot of women left their homes to start careers and make money. This resulted in the breakdown of the family. The heart of the house was gone, which led kids into rebellion against God.

God created men in His image. He created women to be their husband's helper:

Genesis 2:18-22 - The LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him." Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field. But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

So you see, women were created to help their husbands. To support them, encourage them & care for them. When feminism came up, women left their homes and the roles that God has given them. This has feminized men & masculinized women.

When the roles get all messed up, men can't love their wives like they're supposed to and women can't honor their husbands like they should.

If we don't honor God as we should, there is also more room for evil to come into a marriage. Pornography, violence, drug abuse etc. Naturally, this also breaks down a marriage.

When all this evil enters our lives, it's hard to keep our relationships healthy. The only way is to turn to the Lord, repent and start living the way He intended.