One year, for
Father’s Day, my
family gave me a book called, “When
Daddy Prays,” by Nikki Grimes and Tim Ladwig. One page titled, “Like Him,” shows a boy dressed in daddy’s hat, clothes and shoes, and looking in a mirror. In the mirror’s reflection he sees his daddy dressed in those clothes. To quote some of the lines of the poem “I tip Daddy’s hat back so I can see… His pants would puddle at my ankles… I shuffle down the hall… Daddy turns from the altar, smiles, and waves me over. I … drop to my knees and kneel in his shadow. I already know what to say – ‘Our Father, whose heart is heaven…” Did you catch that? “Our Father whose heart is heaven...?”
Is your son
right if he makes that slip of his tongue? The whole reason you are a father is because God has
chosen you to be one. In Genesis 18:19 God points this out about Abraham. “ For I have chosen him, so that he will
direct his
children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, so that the LORD will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him."
1. “I have chosen him.”
Abraham had a very close relationship with God. James 2:23 tells us “…he was called God’s friend.” That relationship was the core of his life and fathering.
The first poem in “When Daddy Prays” is “A Father’s Prayer.” “May my children see beyond my muscles to your strength… May they feel your love in the hollow of my hand. May they hear your voice in the echo of my words.”
How much do you include God? Do you acknowledge Him casually once in a while – but really He doesn’t have anything to do with your life?
You don’t have the option of saying, “No.” God knows you – commands you – has chosen you to be something very special. In Malachi 2:15 God explains, “Has not the LORD made them one? In flesh and spirit they are his. And why one? BECAUSE HE WAS SEEKING GODLY OFFSPRING...”
Too often we are satisfied with the carnal view of successful parenting. We think we have been successful if our child grows up to be decent, hard working, and still likes to come home. You must understand something. Your success doesn’t actually have anything to do with how your children turn out. Your success or failure is whether you do or don’t do what He says. You are successful if you have directed your children and wife to keep the way of the Lord by your doing what is right and just.
Generally, in those circumstances, the children follow the Lord as a result, with some exceptions. You can trace God working through Godly family lines generation after generation. For instance, a pastor I know, John Greening, is the 8th generation of pastors in his family.
2. “That He Will Direct His Children and His household After Him”
God’s command is to stand up and lead your family. Most men prefer for their wives to lead the family in the details and especially in the area of spiritual things. I thank God for something my wife did for me. One day when my kids were still very small, we were discussing the idea of having a “family devotions” time. I made a comment along the line of, “When are you going to start doing it?” She looked me in the eye and said, “That is your job.” I was pretty clumsy starting out, but it became a precious time to us. Now years later, hundreds of books later, they look back on it as a very wonderful thing.
Dad, God commands you, “Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. (Ephesians 6:4). Be a dad. Be a guide – direct them - chart out the course so they can go even farther extending your footsteps and standing on your shoulders.
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