What He Must Be…If He Wants to Marry My Daughter

Currently there appears to be a shortage of godly young men. Church for Men reports, “The typical U.S. Congregation draws an adult crowd that’s 61% female, 39% male. This gender gap shows up in all age categories.” Unfortunately, the trend is getting worse. “As many as 90 percent of the boys who are being raised in church will abandon it by their 20th birthday.”

If, like me, you have a young daughter, these are scary statistics. Even though my girl isn’t far out of the “I’m going to marry Daddy” stage, I’m already concerned about the man she will marry. Author Voddie Baucham understands.

Any father with a daughter even approaching “marriageable age” knows exactly what I’m talking about. There simply aren’t many young men out there who look remotely like What He Must Be. Therefore, we have only one alternative—we must increase the supply. Somehow we have to produce more biblically qualified, Christian prospects for the millions of young women out there who simply cannot settle for less. In order to increase the supply, we must raise, surround ourselves with, and invest in godly young men.

How do parents accomplish this? That’s part of the premise of Baucham’s newest book, What He Must Be…If He Wants to Marry My Daughter. I’m so excited about this book because I can’t think of anything more important than making sure my daughter marries a man who loves Jesus and cherishes her.

Bauchman is quick to point out that it’s not just the parents’ responsibility. Our daughters also have to understand their part in the process, but it’s up to us to help them know exactly what that is.

First, this book will help young women gain a better understanding of what they should be looking for. As the old saying goes, if you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there. Sadly, this is precisely the way many young women approach marriage. Casual dating turns into a long-term relationship. A long-term relationship turns into a foregone conclusion. And eventually that foregone conclusion turns into a marriage. This does not have to be the case. There is more! We must help our daughters turn their affections away from cultural conditioning and toward biblical truth.

Second, this book will help young women see the importance of partnering with their parents in the courtship process. I believe most young women want their parents involved in this. Of course, the culture has painted them into a corner, and they don’t quite know how to get out. Nevertheless, many young women want some degree of help when it comes to choosing a mate. After all, this is the most life-altering decision they will make apart from coming to repentance and faith in Christ.

Finally, this book will help young women realize their dependence upon God. Reading the biblical characteristics of a godly man can be a bit intimidating. Since the bar has been set so low for so long in our culture, many of the qualities and characteristics seem strange, and perhaps a bit distant. But they are supposed to be. This book is not about what every Tom, Dick, and Harry already is; this is about what a God-honoring, Christ-exalting, Bible-believing husband must be. If it were easy or normal, there would be no need for this book. Only God can bring about the kind of change necessary in a young man to prepare him to be the kind of husband the Scriptures portray. Thus, reading this book should drive young women to their knees as they plead with God to make a man like this and bring him across their path. In the meantime, we must not settle for less than what he must be.
-from the chapter, “Multigenerational Vision”

Quite frankly, it doesn’t matter if you have a son or a daughter. Believers in Christ have a responsibility to build our youth and children into the men and women He wants them to be. In What He Must Be, Baucham has given an invaluable resource for those who take this responsibility seriously.

If you’d like to win one of two copies (U.S shipping addresses only) of this book. Please leave a comment. We’ll announce the winners on March 18.

The winner of At the Scent of Water is #17 Victoria.

If you did not receive an email from me, please send your shipping info to 5minutesforbooksATgmail(dot)com.

Melissa has been captivated by books for as long as she can remember. She resides in Virginia and at Breath of Life.