About 18 months or so ago, I decided to make my son a book in my own attempt to become an intentional father. This is how it went.

Firstly, it took much longer than I thought it would. I don’t know if I really knew how long it would take, but it took longer. It took a while to figure out what to write. There is so much that could be said. Then it took a while to figure out how to present it. Then it took even longer to actually you know, write it.

What surprised me was perhaps the ebb and flow of motivation. I constantly felt I had bitten off more than I could chew. I battled with a sense of futility and imposter syndrome. ‘It won’t be any good’, and even if it was ‘he’ll probably just leave it unopened on the floor’. One of the reasons it took a while was because it was hard work and for weeks it would get left fallow.

I narrowed my focus to four main categories: Knowledge, Character, Practices & Skills. I decided there would be 12 of each which plus a few miscellaneous, would make 52 and sort of fit a year. Then I added in some films to watch, books to read (again 12 of each) and challenges to complete (as many as I could think of).

What there is and what there isn’t

There are verses to read, prayers to pray, links to videos to watch, quotes to inspire and a bunch of things like that.

There’s also space for you to write what you’re learning or something you want to give thanks for.

There isn’t a daily checklist, there isn’t a complete set of instructions, it’s not ALL there for you. There’s work, or at least effort, needed by you.

How much you put in will no doubt have an impact on what you get out, and you can let me know if I can help. I will if I can.

Here is what I wrote for each of the categories:

Knowledge

These are important truths to grasp. These 12 topics are a primer to the story of God. Everyone is a theologian but not everyone is a good one. This will help you get started.

character

To be honest this is, in many ways, the most important but it works with the other categories. You’ll be familiar with these: they are the fruits of the Spirit with a few others to round them up to 12.

practices

Being a Christian isn’t just about knowing stuff, but developing a way of life that, like a training plan, shapes you and makes you fitter!

Skills

There’s a lot of other stuff to getting through life. Life skills should not be undervalued. The more competency you develop the better. In this book are some challenges and tips to get you started.