ss061806
Key Scripture: 2 Corinthians 6:18 "I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty." (NIV)
Title: The Blessing of Fatherhood
Being a father has served me a lot of firsts.
I was there for the first breath
I was there for the first smile
I was there for the first word
The first step
The first fall
The first attempt to ride a bicycle
The first day at school
The first play
The first graduation
The first job
The first time to drive a car, and the first wreck
The first purchase of their own car and insurance
The birth of the first child of their own
Being a father has also given me a tremendous education.
I have been schooled in such things as:
Pre-natal care
Stretch marks
Water retention
Delivery
Sleep deprivation
Baby sitting
Nursing
Diet and exercise
Marriage counseling
School teaching
Problem solving
Athletics
Crisis counseling
Negotiating
True and Lasting Friendships
I have been called upon to give definitive answers to questions about:
Animal husbandry
Weather formation
Why roses have thorns
How to make ice cream
Where does snow come from, Where do babies come from
In what ways are little boys and little girls different
Why aren’t we there yet
Where the Easter bunny lives
What colleges to apply to
Which job to pursue
Interest rates
Stock portfolios
Retirement funds
Being a father has taken me to ball games, school functions, the mall, on countless job interviews, hospital visits, fourth of July celebrations, to museums, movies, plays and ceremonies, I’ve traveled from one side of these United States to the other visiting theme parks and national monuments, vacationed in more than two dozen foreign countries and visited US Air Bases from Germany to South Korea, I’ve built a lifetime of memories, I’ve been the Easter Bunny, Santa Clause, the Tooth Fairy and Superman, I have the power to help and the power to hurt, to encourage and to discourage, I’ve been allowed to handle young impressionable lives and teach them what to do and what not to do. All of this because I am a father.
As far as my children were concerned, my voice was the voice of God for their young lives. Now, in their mature years, leading their own families, they still seek my counsel for life’s major decisions.
In 1998 both my son and my daughter got married eight days apart. My son joined the USAF and my daughter moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma with her husband to attend College.
The first day my wife and I were home, all alone, she saw me crying. Being the good wife she is, she attempted to comfort me. With her hugs she asked me what was wrong. I told her that I felt lost and had just realized for the first time that all I ever wanted to be was a father. What, I asked her, was I going to do with the rest of my life?
Today, more than eight years later, I closely identify with a prominent bible character who feels the same way. Which bible character do you think I am talking about?
It’s someone who wanted to be a father and wanted to love and care for his children, build them a strong and solid foundation and a prosperous future. He wanted his children to love him and trust his counsel. Who is this bible character I am talking about?
Do you suppose it is Abraham? No. How about Jacob? No. Perhaps it’s Joseph or Noah, Simon or Phillip. No, none of these, although I understand them more now than I did when I was much younger.
The bible character I am talking about is the main character of the bible: It’s God! I see God as my pattern Father. I feel His heart. Now, looking back on my life, I can understand Him so much better. His motives are so much more clear and His counsel more trusted.
You see, God wanted to be a Father and so He created the heavens and the earth, the cattle, sheep, trees and all living things, the sun and the moon, the waters and the dry ground. He planted a garden in Eden where His children would be safe and could grow up under His guidance. His hopes were high.
From the dust of the ground God created mankind and gave them His Own Spirit. When mankind fell into sin, God made a way to pay for their sin with His Own Sacrifice … like a Father does so often.
God gave His children His word to guide them and His Spirit to provide for them. He promised to never leave us nor forsake us. His plans for His children are beyond imagination. Soon we will see Him face to face.
Today, our father’s day message comes from the book of Psalms. Won’t you turn to Psalms 103 and lets see the pattern Father.
Psalms 103 (NIV)
1 ¶ Of David. Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits—
3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
6 ¶ The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the children of Israel:
8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.
9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbour his anger for ever;
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him
All God has ever wanted to be is a Father to you. Won’t you let Him.
To the father’s among us … What a privilege! Happy Father’s Day!
Pattern yourself after God.
