Our sermon for Father's Day was delivered by a guest preacher … and what a preacher he was.


My family belongs to a very large, very prominent Methodist church. We joined when there were 400 or so members, in 1994. Now there are over 15,000. Our pastor has written books and is well known throughout the country for his intellect, his preaching ability, his business acumen, and perhaps most importantly, his outreach to non-religious or nominally religious folks in the community.


Because of his visibility, our pastor knows and meets many influential folks. It was during a trip to Oklahoma to meet with Billy Graham that our pastor met last night’s guest preacher, Carey Casey.


Carey Casey is an African American Baptist preacher, and few experiences mimic that of hearing a Black Baptist preacher! This guy was awesome and one would have to be in a coma to not have gained something from what he said. Tidbits from his exciting and unique life were sprinkled in with his message to fathers about how to impact their kids.


Have you ever watched the movie Remember the Titans?
Carey Casey played on the opposing team that was represented in the last game of that movie.


Carey Casey was the Chaplin for the Olympic team in Seoul in 1988.


Casey is currently the Chaplain for the Kansas City Chiefs, and even more importantly, he is the CEO (according to him, the Chief Encouragement Officer) for the National Center on Fathering. Their mission statement says: The mission of the National Center for Fathering is to improve the well-being of children by inspiring and equipping men to be more effectively involved in the lives of children.


There are articles on this website pertaining to all aspects of fathering. There is even a section for adoptive fathers.


Now, I have to say, some of the most awesome dads I have met are adoptive dads, dads who are persevering and succeeding with some really hard kids. But I know there are dads out there struggling as much as their wives do with the challenges of parenting kids who are not reciprocating love.


I will never forget one dad in particular who sat on my living room couch and cried as he told me how he had been ostracized by his family. (You know, the extended-family-doesn't-get-it scene ... ) He and his wife had adopted Eastern European twins and these children had really, really brought this family to their knees. I wrote an article about RAD Dads and quoted this man extensively. He was so broken by this experience.


I am excited that the National Center on Fathering is headquartered in Kansas City. And I am always excited about any organization that encourages and supports parents. I stood in line to meet the pastor after the sermon and pressed one of my business cards into his palm. I hope to forge some connections going forward.


Photo Credit