A charge to my son on his wedding day~part 1~the background

When our youngest son, Samuel David married on May 2 of this year, I  wanted to pass something on to him that would empower him as a  man~and that he would remember over his entire life as he entered the   marathon called marriage; and so at one point during the reception, I sat he  and his new bride in the midst of  several of the men who were influential in  he and his brothers life and  with his future father in law standing with us,  gave  him a  charge,  gifted him a sword, and commended him to God in  prayer along with his bride.

Many people commented on the charge I gave.  A number of men, including  my brother Wally even asked if  they  could  have a copy; and so, I decided to post David’s charge at their request and as part of our family record.

I must admit, however that I’m hesitant in doing so lest my act toward my son be misused. The charge I gave to David was given, not as a novel addition to a wedding, nor to start a new wedding tradition. It was given, rather, as the capstone and fitting conclusion to David’s journey into manhood~and because his mother and I raised he and his brother Joshua~not to be wimps, and not to be barbarians, but to be MEN~and men of God at that~ the charge carried meaning~and very significant meaning for him, which he will carry with him for the rest of his life.

My charge to David, you see, was the outflow of countless books, articles, stories, and experiences which he read, studied and passed through as he grew up~many of which were purposed while some were not; and that was the context which made the charge significant. In context, my charge empowered his manhood, while attempting a charge without the context would be simply meaningless~a mere empty tradition. This is my concern~that people will copy the charge, without having built the context.

With this in mind, it is my hope, that those inspired by reading the charge will understand the context in which my words were spoken and if, inspired by it, they choose to do the same for their sons, they will first invest the time and take the pains necessary to raise their sons in the nurture and admonition of the Lord~to be His men~so that when their charge is given it too will have strong significance~empowering into manhood another generation of men who are fit to bear that title~men of God!