I’m 26 years old with two kids.
I haven’t lived a ton of life to be giving out words of wisdom.
But I have realized one thing very quickly that I wish I could’ve told my 18-year-old self.
You will be required to sacrifice if you are going to choose to do the Lord’s will.
You will be required to sacrifice if you are going to choose to take a different path than most others.
You will be required to sacrifice if you are going to want to raise a family this young.
You will be required to sacrifice if you are going to live out your Vocation as a husband and father to the fullest.
I think social media gives us the false idea that we can have and do it all.
We can have a big happy family, an insanely lucrative career, a big house, a vibrant social life, travel the world, and be ridiculously fit all at the same time.
In the REAL world, you can really only choose 2-3 of these on any given day.
Social media is really good at lying to us.
Giving us visuals of an ideal life and then letting us go to work on trying to attain this “ideal” life, only to find out it’s unattainable.
I know that sounds negative, but here’s the reality:
The insanely successful entrepreneur probably doesn’t have a big, happy family, because he’s too busy working.
On the flipside, the present husband and father likely doesn’t have an insanely lucrative business or career, because he’s chosen to spend that time with his family instead.
Now, a man can still do both, but everything in this life is a tradeoff.
We hear this all the time:
“We all have the same 24 hours in a day.”
I like to say that to make the opposite point.
We all have the same 24 hours in a day, which means if we are focusing on one thing, we are, by definition, neglecting something else.
We must first get a clear idea of what our priorities are, and let our actions flow from that.
If we want to be present husbands and fathers, then we face the reality that we are sacrificing other things.
And that’s okay.
But if we are still under the false illusion that we can still “have it all,” then we are only confusing ourselves and setting ourselves up for failure.
Financial success, physical health, buying a nice house, having a happy family, and a relationship with Christ are all things we are likely striving for as husbands and fathers.
However, if we judge ourselves by our ability to check all these boxes each day, we are going to fail.
If we look at the long term and recognize that all these things ebb and flow, we will quietly find ourselves much happier and more patient.
It’s a marathon, not a sprint.
The most important thing we can do is talk to God every day, do his will, and be willing to sacrifice.
Living a life with Christ is an adventure, but it isn’t without sacrifice.
So stop seeking the “comfort” of self-reliance and attaining all things all the time.
Let that part of you die.
Seek Him and let Him take care of your needs and desires.
God bless,
Mitch