“For you know how, like a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.” - 1 Thessalonians 2:11-12
With Father’s Day approaching, we’re asking a deeper question: What kind of legacy are we leaving as men, as dads, and as stewards of what God has entrusted to us? Jonathan Lewis from Fathers for Fathers joins us to talk about fatherhood, faith, and the financial discipleship that shapes generations.
Jonathan Lewis is a Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA®), a Certified Kingdom Advisor (CKA®), and President of Eastport Financial Group Inc. He is also the founder of Fathers for Fathers, a faith-based organization dedicated to restoring hope, healing, and purpose in the lives of men, especially fathers.
A Story Redeemed
When Jonathan was 15, he experienced a trauma no child should face—dragging his father’s lifeless body onto a beach in Nova Scotia after a drowning accident. That moment became a fracture point in his life, leading to years of instability, homelessness, guilt, and emotional isolation.
But out of those ashes came clarity: a calling to reach other men who feel lost, alone, and ashamed. His ministry, Fathers for Fathers, is a direct response to the epidemic of fatherlessness and emotional isolation plaguing men today.
The Epidemic Few Talk About
84% of men say they don’t have a single person they can talk to.
Guys have been trained to withdraw, but we need each other. If you’re listening and feel like you’ve failed as a father, or you don’t even have the strength to keep going, you’re not alone. You can do this, but not by yourself.
The solution is community and accountability. And for men who do have a support system, pursue others. Don’t take the first 12 ‘no’s as a brush-off. Broken men want to be pursued. They’re just afraid.
What Does Faithful Fatherhood Look Like?
So, what does it mean to be a successful father?
First, if you’re still breathing, your story isn’t over. You haven’t missed your chance.
Using a football analogy from Fathers for Fathers’ upcoming study, life can be described as a game we’re all born into—on the wrong team. But we don’t have to stay there. Through Jesus Christ, we’re invited to join the winning team. But it requires repentance, humility, and a willingness to fight.
And it often starts with small steps.
Practical Steps Toward Restoration
For divorced dads and those estranged from their children, you may think there’s no way back. But there is. If you’re not in your kids’ lives, start. If you haven’t supported their mom, own it. If you’ve been battling secret sin—confess it.
These are hard words, but they’re spoken with deep compassion. God will honor you when you honor Him. This ministry isn’t about beating men up. It’s about helping them get back in the game.
Stewardship Starts at Home
Stewardship isn’t just about money. If you’re generous with your wealth but not your love or your time, you’ve missed the point.
Stewardship begins with the way a man loves and leads his family, especially his wife. When reading Ephesians 5, men might say, ‘I’d take a bullet for my wife.’ But Christ calls us to something harder: dying to ourselves daily.
Stewardship, then, is about priorities: honoring God with your money, your time, your attention, and your affection.
A Prayer for Dads
If you’re a father or a man who feels discouraged, who is ready for more, and who is just hanging on. Pray this out loud:
“Lord, I pray that Your Spirit would touch the heart of the man l
