Raising My Son at Sunrise: Teaching the Fruit of the Spirit the African Way

Every morning since my son turned two, I have taken on the sacred duty of preparing him for school. What began as necessity, my wife was briefly out of town, quickly grew into one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. Those dawn hours of bathing, dressing, praying, and talking have become the bedrock of our relationship. They are not simply routines; they are holy moments.

In those quiet mornings, I discovered something profound: the ordinary can become extraordinary when you infuse it with intention. While tying his shoelaces, I speak life into his future. While helping him brush his teeth, I remind him that his words must always be truthful and kind. While pouring water over his small head, I declare that his life is washed and prepared for purpose.

These moments taught me that parenting is less about control and more about relationship. Discipline is not the act of breaking a child’s will; it is the art of modeling values and guiding choices. I do not yell. I do not spank. I do not threaten. Instead, I teach him that every part of his body is private and sacred, that his voice matters, and that his dignity is never up for negotiation. These lessons are repeated in everyday acts, like knocking before entering his room, or listening carefully to his thoughts.

From these foundations grew our deeper conversations. Recently, his mother began introducing him to the Fruit of the Spirit. One morning, to my surprise, he asked me: “Daddy, what are the Fruit of the Spirit?” That single question became a challenge, and a calling. How do you teach a three-year-old spiritual truths so weighty, yet so essential?

I found my answer in African wisdom. Instead of abstract lessons, I reached for stories, images, and practices he could touch and feel.

🌳 Love I told him, is like the kola nut shared at family gatherings. Though bitter at first taste, it binds people together in unity and respect. Love sometimes requires sacrifice, but it always draws us closer.

🌞 Joy is like the sound of African drums at a festival. Even when you are tired, the rhythm enters your bones and makes you dance. Joy is not about things; it is about the song inside your heart.

🌊 Peace is like sitting under the baobab tree in the heat of the afternoon. The shade cools everyone equally, rich or poor. Peace brings rest and makes room for others to breathe.

⏳ Patience is like waiting for yam to roast in hot coal. You cannot rush it; if you do, you will eat it raw. Patience ensures that what you receive is worth the wait.

🌿 Kindness is like offering water to a traveler on a dusty road. Small gestures may seem simple, but to the weary, they mean the world.

🌟 Goodness is like telling the truth even when it costs you.
Our elders say: “Bí ìrò bá sáré títí fún ogún ọdún, òtítọ́ á lè bọ̀ wá ní ọjọ́ kan.”
(Even if a lie runs for twenty years, the truth will catch up with it in a single day.)

🪘 Faithfulness is like the griot who keeps the history of the village. Through storms and seasons, he preserves the story without distortion. Faithfulness is consistency.

🪶 Gentleness is like carrying an egg in your palm. Too much force will break it. A gentle hand saves fragile hearts.

🔥 Self-control is like standing before a pot of hot stew and waiting until it cools. It takes strength to hold back, but that strength protects you.

Through these African images, the Fruit of the Spirit became real to him. No longer just words from Galatians, they became guides everyday.

This is what I am learning at 50-plus: fatherhood is not about giving children the world, but about giving them roots. The fruit they will bear tomorrow depends on the seeds we sow today, in the bathroom, at the breakfast table, on the walk to school.

So every morning, I plant seeds of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. I may not live forever, but if my son grows into a man whose life reflects these fruits, then I would have given him, and the world, the greatest inheritance of all.

Do have an INSPIRED week with the family.