What a great one-liner Southwest Airlines has used to encourage folks to escape from present circumstances and travel to one of their many destinations for a reasonable fare. The commercials are effective because everyone can relate to the awkwardness of showing up at the wrong place at the wrong time and wanting to get small. Southwest pipes in, “Wanna get away?”

That can happen to us dads as the kids mature. It seems we turn around and another school year is in the books - Fifty-two marbles gone if you are counting. That boy is becoming a young man and the little girl is becoming a young lady. The busy-ness of work and activities have made any one-on-one time almost impossible. “Wanna get away?” Join us for a week of camping and hiking high up in the Santa Fe National Forest or hiking and backpacking trails in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. Click on this link to view a one-minute video on the High Country Adventure for men & young men, and click on this link to see an overview of the father-daughter & father-son trips.

Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. – Luke 6:12. Jesus’ one-on-one time with His Father was critical at several points on His journey as the Son. It was key to their relationship, a relationship that had to be tight in order to rebuke the devil’s schemes to take the Son out. Similarly, the father-son and father-daughter relationships must be tight to recognize and rebuke the forces actively working to drive a wedge into family relationships. When a dad is not in the picture, a spiritual father must step up.

These summer trips provide for a good bit of one-on-one time while enjoying His creation on the trail in the mountains. I encourage you to commit the time at key junctures of your kids' lives to ‘get away’ and connect to a new level of relationship with the Father and with each other.

Prayer guide: Lord, thank You for the time you opened up to go hiking and backpacking with my daughter 19 years ago and with my son 15 years ago. Both trips provided unique and powerful markers in our relationship with You and with each other. Thank You for the double blessing that both of them help with the hiking and backpacking trips we lead to this day. I remember the glimpse of Your glory on those initial trips so long ago but I could not have anticipated the way Your Light has continued to blast through shadows that tried to drive a wedge into our relationships over the years. Thank You for opening my eyes to the importance of ‘getting away’ and the significance of unique one-on-one time with You and with my kids. Help me always tune-in to You and prioritize the right stuff. Amen.

A faithful father will prioritize time to get away and connect one-on-one with the Father and his kids.