Who doesn’t love a good movie? Having worked in the film and TV industry for over 20 years, I certainly appreciate a good story, well told through the medium of moving pictures. Here at Dads4Kids, we love shining a light on great films, especially those with strong fathering themes, and we have done so for many years through this weekly newsletter and our Daily Dad website. See here, here and here for a few recent examples.

Introducing Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters

Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters is a wholesome, heart-warming, family-friendly flick based on the best-selling book by Dr Meg Meeker. Down-to-earth audiences may find a few scenes to be a little cheesy, and some of the performances are a little over the top, but my family and I certainly enjoyed the film for the most part.

The movie’s tagline ‘Love Takes Faith’ is a quotable quote, and the synopsis sums it up this way: ‘When a wealthy businessman learns of his daughter’s sudden engagement to a missionary, he embarks on a quest to keep her closer to home, but when his efforts go awry he must reconsider what being a strong father really means.’

It’s a solid effort by Director David de Vos and his team, and themes of family, fathering, and the enduring importance of marriage run strong throughout the film. The protagonist Steve Parston is played by Bart Johnson, and one critic described his performance in the film as ‘trying too much’. I disagree. As a father of 5 wonderful daughters, I could identify with Steve’s stressful struggles. Sometimes, or most of the time for me, we muddle our way through as fathers.

Fathering Take-Aways

The film has some beautiful, even poignant scenes (I won’t give too much away here), but for me there were two big fathering take-aways. The first is Steve’s mistaken belief that if he works really hard and provides plenty of wealth for his family, he’ll be a great father. While providing is certainly an important role for dads, it’s not enough to just be a great provider for our families. We also need to spend quality time with, and be emotionally available for, our families.

The second is the importance of unconditional love, also known as affection without any limitations. The film depicts Steve, at times painfully, learning the lessons of loving all 3 of his daughters (played by Carrie Alexander, Kayla DiVenere, and Everson White) unconditionally.

Dads4Kids’ friend Dr Bruce Robinson has a simple yet powerful acronym to help us Dads ‘get on the Fatherhood BUS.’ The ‘B’ stands for being there for your children, the ‘U’ stands for unconditional love, and the ‘S’ stands for make your child feel special.

In Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters, Steve learns the importance of unconditional love for his daughters the hard way, but in the end, it’s oh so sweet.

Lovework

Watch Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters with your family. If you have sons, it might not be their idea of a great film, but most Dads, Mums and daughters will enjoy it. I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Yours for Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters and Strong Sons,

Nathaniel Marsh

Thought for the Week

“Spending time with children is more important than spending money on children.” – Anthony Douglas Williams

Dad’s Prayer

Dear Father God, help me to get my priorities in the right order. Help me understand that my kids need me more than they need my money. Thank you for the wisdom of your Word in Proverbs 22 verse 6: ‘Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.’ Help me to love my kids unconditionally, without limits, just like how you love me.