DOMINION DUD

by John Sleadd, August 28, 2007

This post is to acknowledge that some folks get the willies when the word “dominion” is used. To them it sounds militant and exploitive, like something whacked out jihadists shout while strapping on an explosive vest. The term implies control, power and dominance. I want to assure you that I disapprove of dads who act like popes in their home or drill sergeants barking orders at their wife and kids. I am opposed to dictator dads.

I like to use the term in a positive sense. I think a man who keeps harmful influences out of his home and who manages his household wisely is taking dominion. God calls men to exercise dominion by loving their wives sacrificially and by training their children without exasperating them. God calls men to be a good neighbor and to conduct business with integrity.

Unfortunately, I am often a dominion dud. I want to change the world (and my home) but I can barely control my thought life, or keep my socks from piling up on the dresser. Many times it’s easier for my wife and kids to laugh at me rather than respect and obey me. I may have good intentions to lead my family, but my fuse sometimes doesn’t burn all the way to the powder.

There is hope for a guy like me, however. The redeeming work of Christ in a man’s heart rewires him for operation, and enables him to become a servant leader in his home. “And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers.” (Malachi 4:6)

Being a dominion dad essentially means becoming less while Christ becomes more (John 3:30). It is exciting when a man sees his marriage and his family as his most important earthly project. When he is committed to serving his Lord, to honoring his marriage vows, to training his children in the faith, and to being a gracious ambassador of Christ in all that he does in his community, he takes dominion.