I’m thinking of writing two stories, each about a father and his relationship with his children. Please help me by evaluating the realism of the storyline.

A loving father teach would his children how to choose what is good for them and how to identify and avoid what is bad for them. That sounds realistic, doesn’t it?

If that father watched as his children made their choices, and noticed his child being unsure and reaching for the dangerous object, do you think he would warn his child and remind him which object was the healthy choice? I think he would. Would he be more likely to intervene if the choice meant life or death? I’d bet my last dollar that the father would do everything he could to ensure his child selected the choice that would give life.

To make the story interesting let’s add a challenge. Maybe the father is unfortunately stationed far away from his family, but he has a webcam set up so he can watch his little ones growing up. However; let’s suppose the communication is faulty and is only working in one direction. His children couldn’t see him or hear him.

Let’s add some conflict to make the story more interesting. Suppose the “likable” next door neighbor had a twisted side to her. She made cookies to lure the kids to her house and spend time with her. She played mind games with them. She tricked them and punished them when they fell for her tricks.

Today’s audiences require quite a bit of challenge and emotion to keep them involved in a story, so let’s turn up the stress still further. Suppose the children hadn’t seen their father in such a long time that they didn’t really remember him. Do you think that would cause the father to give up trying to save his children? Or do you think he would try to prove to them that he was their father and that they could trust him?

Let’s make this story a real tear jerker by adding some drama to the plot. Let’s change the scenario from the father being stationed far away to the father being terminally ill and dying before his children were very old. The oldest ones remember him, but the younger ones aren’t even sure he existed. Maybe, they think, the older ones just wish they remembered a father.

Let’s say this terminally ill father realized what a threat the “likable” neighbor lady would be when his kids were without him, because he’d heard rumors from other neighbors about the twisted games she played with their kids. The kids liked her and all her cookies, candy, smiles, and hugs. They would not report her behavior because the fun they had at her house out weighed the hurt that resulted.

Rumor had it that the neighbor lady’s games were getting darker. Some suspect she’s started to sprinkle a bit of poison on her sweet cookies. Not enough poison to kill a child right away, but after consuming a sizable number of them, the poison would build up to a toxic level. That should add plenty of drama to our story: a dying father, vulnerable children, and a twisted lady next door. This could be the next best seller!

What could the father do to try to save his children from the perils that would face them in the years to come? Do you think he might ask some trusted friends to warn his children when they reached an age when they might go next door to a neighbor’s house? Suppose the children were skeptical of such advice since they’d heard other neighborhood children tell of how much fun they had at the neighbor lady’s house. Do you think the father’s friends would have an attitude of “Oh well, suit yourselves. I said I’d tell you and I’ve done that. Do whatever you want”? Or do you think that father’s trusted friend would make an effort to convince the children that the message was from their father who loved them and wanted the best for them?

Suppose the kids were not pushovers. They were pretty street smart for how old they were. Suppose they said “You’re making it all up! Why should we believe you?” And the youngest said “I don’t even think we had a father! I’ve never seen him, not even a picture of him!”

How would the father’s trusted friend respond? Would he sigh and leave it at that? I don’t think so. I think he would try to reassure them that they did indeed have a father, and he knew him. I think he would tell them some of the things that their father had done for them because he loved them.

I’d bet that before the father died he would have written a letter for his children to read when they were able, or for them to hear someone else read to them until they were old enough to read it for themselves.

I’ve heard of people who were going on a dangerous journey writing letters to their loved ones in case they didn’t survive, and of trapped miners leaving notes for their families, and so forth, haven’t you? That seems plausible, right?

What would be in that letter? I’m pretty sure he would tell them he was their father and that he loved them dearly. Do you agree? If the father realized that some of his children would even doubt his existence, I think he would do his best to assure them that he really did exist and loved them. Certainly he would warn them about the tricks that the twisted neighbor would try to pull on them, the hurtful games she played, and to be especially wary of the poisonous cookies!

I think it’s realistic to expect the father to warn his children to stay away from the twisted neighbor all together, and to encourage them to spend time with people they could trust, who showed them love, not trickery. Does that sound right to you?

Well done! I think we’ve pieced together a great outline for a believable, dramatic storyline. We could now write a book, a play, or a movie.

Let’s move on to the story of the second loving father. This story is slightly different, but it is based on the same storyline, so I’ll bet you’ll start putting the pieces together pretty quickly, and I won’t even have to tell you the whole story.

In this case the Father is God and the children are all the people of the world. The twisted neighbor is Satan. The hurtful games are the traps Satan sets such as alcohol, drugs, sex, gangs, materialism, and so forth. The punishments are diseases, addictions, financial problems, loneliness, worry, fear, etc. The trusted friend who is trying his best to help the children understand their father’s love and warning is the group of active Christians in this world. (If you ever wondered why Christians don’t leave unbelievers alone after one interaction, now I hope you’ll better understand their persistence.) The Bible is God’s letter to all of the people of the world, telling them how much He loves them, giving them examples of how He cared for them in the past, warning them of dangers they will face, encouraging them to choose life giving options instead of deadly options, and offering evidence that He is real. Please take time to read it!