Glen Henry on Why Fatherhood Begins with Fathering Yourself First
Maina Mwaura
Audio By Carbonatix
By Maina Mwaura, Crosswalk.com
Glen Henry is known to be a creative force in nature, by just the very nature of being a musician, YouTube influencer, and author of a new book, Father Yourself First. However, the one title that Henry loves is that of being a father. During the sit-down interview with Crosswalk, it was apparent that there is never a dull moment in the Henry Household as he, along with his wife, manage four adorable children who have also been known to join him during the YouTube recordings. In his new book, Henry wants the audience to know and understand that if a dad is going to be the person that he needs to be, he has to father himself first.
CrossWalk: Where were you when you knew you had to write this book?
Glen Henry: I knew this book was needed when I started doing the YouTube recordings; however, I needed them to believe me when I told them, because some things weren't going to be easy to hear.
CW: What did God reveal to you during this process?
GH: It wasn't necessarily that the book was the finished product. I felt like the Lord has been teaching me more about myself and allowing me to be raised through fatherhood, through the relationships of the people who are really close to me, which are my wife and my children. I was really challenged by the role of fatherhood and how patient I was as a father, and how good I was as a father; it didn't really expand outside of that. I wasn't a patient, brother, son, patron, neighbor. If this only lasts in fatherhood, then I'm screwed; this has to spread out. The book-writing process helped me expand outside of being a father.
CW: Are you amazed by the two million viewers?
GH: The numbers really do scare me. The goal isn't to have a bunch of people watching.
The goal is really to help change the mind of fatherhood and help people know that they can do it; proof is power. Yeah. I guess the success, what people call success, is numbers, but I don't see it that way; it’s the byproduct of working, you know, just what happens when you work.
CW: Before you became a stay-at-home dad, you had an incredible career in the entertainment industry. How did you pivot from that?
GH: The biggest career shift for me was from music to being a stay-at-home father. The grind of always creating, always being on the road, just kind of just working only for more people, there was something happening where I realized that it felt like worship. I was on stage, people putting up their hands and waving their hands. To me, felt a little, almost like idolatry. I didn't really feel comfortable doing that, I don't really like the limelight, So when I would get home my children would run to my feet, it reminded me how the Father makes Himself present when we pursue Him.
CW: What cost was being on the road, having for you?
GH: The cost of doing music is you travel, you get to the venue, you unpack, you set up the stage, you get some food, you do a meet and greet. I would perform, tear down, hit the bus, do it all again the next day. I was actually on stage like two hours out of 24 hours, you know, the impact would be maybe some people didn't even like your music, so you end up really impacting maybe 25 people. I realized that the stage and the audience was more important in my living room than it was, the biggest stage I would ever stand on.
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Photo Credit: ©Glen Henry
MAINA MWAURA is a freelance writer and journalist who has interviewed over 800 influential leaders, including two US Presidents, three Vice-Presidents, and a variety of others. Maina, is also the author of the Influential Mentor, How the life and legacy of Howard Hendricks Equipped and Inspired a Generation of Leaders. Maina and his family reside in the Kennesaw, Georgia area.
