Ed Tandy McGlasson, a burly former football player, has a soft spot in his heart for children with imperfect fathers or no father at all. In a series of six videos, “The Blessing of the Father for Families,” he shows how our heavenly Father can heal the wounds left by our earthly fathers.
“God has made every one of us to be loved and blessed by our fathers,” McGlasson said. “But if fathers aren’t around or aren’t loving, we suffer from wounds inflicted by them. Ultimately, you have to look to God for your blessing. It doesn’t matter if you had a bad dad or a great dad, God has an amazing plan for you.”
The videos come with a workbook that can be used alone at home or in a group at church, wherever you’re watching the series produced by Blessing of the Father Ministries. McGlasson shares from personal experience how important a father can be – his birth father, a Navy pilot, died in a plane crash before he was born.
U.S. Census statistics show how widespread fatherlessness is: An estimated 1 out of 3 children lives in a home without his or her biological father. Fatherlessness has been linked to:
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adolescent pregnancy,
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domestic violence,
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homelessness,
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poverty,
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sexual abuse,
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substance abuse,
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suicide and
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many other social, physical and spiritual ills.
McGlasson—who got his middle name, Tandy, from his birth father—takes his last name from his stepfather, also an officer in the Navy. McGlasson describes him as a noble man who had a powerful impact on his life but, like all fathers, was not perfect.
When McGlasson was a Pee-Wee football player, he was afraid of getting hit. His stepfather, who played college football, said, “Hit me, son.”
McGlasson became upset and started to cry. So his stepfather hit him with his elbow and knocked him out, explaining that he would never be hit like that again, so he didn’t have to be afraid.
Despite the tough lesson, his life revolved around football. When a knee injury nearly ended his career in college, he became an outspoken Christian, using the heavenly Father’s relationship with Jesus as an example of the type of relationship every father needs to have with his children.
“The words your father speaks over you determine how you see yourself,” McGlasson said. “The words spoken over you have great power to limit you or release you.”
McGlasson played offensive line for the Los Angeles Rams, New York Jets and New York Giants before entering full-time ministry. He has since planted a church, Stadium Vineyard in Anaheim, where he has served as lead pastor for 34 years and ministered to families at conferences around the country and through his work at Blessing of the Father Ministries.
For more information about “The Blessing of the Father for Families” or to view an episode of the series, visit alarryross.com/
