Clerics advise fathers to live responsibly, give recipes for healthy marriages

Pastor Fred Odekhian of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Court of His Majesty, yesterday, advised fathers to live responsibly and shun divorce in order to raise morally upright children.

Odekhian gave the advice during the commemoration of Fathers’ Day with the theme: ‘Understanding Manhood: Fatherhood’, at Abesan Estate, Ipaja, Lagos State.

He said the increase in social vices among youths was as a result of fathers’ absence in training the children right from infancy.

The cleric noted that most women had become single mothers and were solely nurturing their kids.

“For a child to be properly groomed with the right moral standards, the father must be contributory in the process,’’ Odekhian said.

He, however, urged men to live up to their responsibilities in grooming their wards to avoid exposing the children to social vices. “Fatherhood entails understanding your obligations and responsibilities as a man to your wife, children and society.

“The absence of fathers in training the children had caused social menace in the society and note that divorce would have negative influence on your children.

The father and mother should stay together to raise the children. Try to understand your differences and live happily together.

“The home is a place to celebrate and not a place to be beating your wife and oppressing her,’’ he said.

To build a community of people who will hold forth the original intention of God for the institution of marriage in difficult times, Capstone Church, Yaba, Lagos State, recently organised a couples’ breakfast meeting, the 15th edition in the last eight years.

Convener of the meeting, Pastor Funmi Johnson, while addressing couples, single parents, and marriage counsellors, said: “God is the originator and designer of the marriage institution, which should be kept honorable”.

She noted that many couples are holding on to the traditional customs instead of the Biblical counsels on marriages, adding that, “the man is the head of home while the wife is the saviour of the home. Couples should listen, communicate and appreciate themselves more.”

Johnson outlined some factors plaguing modern-day marriages, such as gossip, lack of agape love, and attitude problems.