by Jor-El Godsey, President
Heartbeat International

“Two are better than one…” says the preacher in Ecclesiastes. Because, well, the word “Ecclesiastes” actually means “preacher.”

Of course, this can be both a controversial statement on parenting structure and a statistical parenting reality in success metrics for children.

It is, after all, that we find in Ecclesiastes - the encouragement for connection revealing that “Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor; for if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion…”

Enter the dad.

Whether biological, adopted, or spiritual, a dad fits into God’s design that “two are better than one.”

God, Himself, declared this of Adam even while still in the perfection that is the Garden (Genesis 2).

A dad brings many things to the family.

Okay, more than “Dad Jokes” and the globally recognized meaning of “Pull my finger.”

With our eyesight, it is best to have two eyes in order to have the best sense of depth perspective.

With our hearing, two ears can better sense distance and motion from the sounds we hear.

With parenting, a dad adds a dimension of perspective to the lives of children.

When our kids were small, my wife, Karen, was more quickly inclined to say “be careful” at the playground, while I was often quick to say, “How high can you go?” At the pool our directives were similarly disparate.

Our perspective on exploring our world was somewhat different.

Dads often see the world in terms of the challenge.

I’m guessing most kid trips to the Emergency Room started with the phrase, “Watch what I can do, Dad!”

That’s why two are better than one. We need both perspectives – be careful and push farther.

Let's be sure to celebrate the fathers in our movement and the future fathers who walk into our organizations in a particular way this Father's Day.