By Israel Wayne
I was recently approached by a mother at a homeschooling convention who heard me speak to the teens on the topic of “Waiting for True Love.” She brought her 11-yr-old daughter up to me and said, “Mr. Wayne, can you please tell my daughter why, when she turns 18, that she needs not to date guys and needs to allow her father and I to pick the person she marries?” I studied her face for a moment to see if she was serious. She was. I told her, “If you and your husband have cultivated an open relationship of trust and communication with your daughter, when she is 18, she will be knocking your door down (figuratively) to get your advice, wisdom, guidance, counsel and blessing regarding who she marries. If you have proven that you are trustworthy, have a good track record of making good and godly decisions, and she is fully convinced that you have her best interests at heart, you won’t be able to keep her away from seeking you out for wisdom, blessing and counsel. On the other hand, if all of that is not in place, then anything that you try to impose from the outside will only back-fire on you and cause even more bitterness, resentment and rejection.” Continue reading “Reexamining the Patriarchal Vision”