A Father's Wise Advice

“My children, listen when your father corrects you. Pay attention and learn good judgment, for I am giving you good guidance. Don’t turn away from my instructions.” Proverbs 4:1-2 NLT (http://bible.com/116/pro.4.1-2.nlt)

I'm a father of three wonderful daughters. I pray for them every night that the Lord will give them good judgment. In my 35 years as a father I've given my share of advice. I have given advice on jobs, raising kids, faith, potential moves, and fashion. Yep, they really listen to me on that one! I get frustrated when my daughters don't listen to me. I have 55 years of life experiences and I hate to see my girls repeat mistakes I have made. But, they are adults and sometimes they need to learn for themselves by making mistakes. It still frustrates me and causes me pain when I see them struggling through life's challenges. If they would just listen to me and my experiences, their lives would be so much better!

It's about this time in my thoughts that I realize I have a Heavenly Father thinking the exact same thing about me! My daughters don't always listen to my 55 years of experience, but I have no excuse for not listening to the creator of the universe. Many times I won't even go to him for advice and when I do, I often ignore it. I turn away from his instruction. Busting out on my own without Gods guidance nearly always ends in disaster. Then I sheepishly return asking for forgiveness and a way to make things right. I've never been abandoned. My God is a great father. 

Thank you Lord for not leaving me when I ignore your wonderful guidance. Please be with my girls. Give them guidance, be with them, help them when they fail, and protect them from the enemy. I love you Lord and your grace is amazing. Thank you Lord for your patience and love!

Wanted: Good Fathers!

This is a reprint of a blog I wrote last year. I thought it was fitting to reprint it for Fathers Day. 

To all you fathers out their, I hope you had as great a day as I did!

Psalm 68 (New International Version, ©2011)

 ⁴ Sing to God, sing in praise of his name,
   extol him who rides on the clouds^[b];
   rejoice before him—his name is the LORD.
⁵ A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,
   is God in his holy dwelling. ⁶ God sets the lonely in families,^[c]
   he leads out the prisoners with singing;
   but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.


My Dad was a great man. I grew up in a "normal" home. We not only went to Church, but I witnessed first hand the transformation of my father from a business man to a Methodist Pastor. (A darn good one too!) I would give anything to have had more time with my Dad. Everyone can not say that about their Dad. As an educator and an administrator, I can tell you that the world is suffering for Fathers. The norm for our society  is getting to be families minus fathers. Even if a family does have a Father, many times they are weak and uninvolved.

The Old Testament mentions God, the Father, only 15 times. The New Testament speaks of God as Father 245 times. Once Jesus, God came down to be with us, we started thinking of him as Father. He is the ultimate Father. New Testament Fathers were the leaders of their households. He was the person family members went to for advice. He was the religious leader by the example he set.  This is also the perfect description of my Dad. I was lucky. God created Fathers to be all those things and more.

The most common factor of troubled kids at my school is..............an absent or weak father. Kids we expel, Kids that get into fights, kids with poor grades, kids who are absent and kids who just don't care about school, nearly all have weak or absent fathers. I was talking to a friend who does a lot of Prison Ministry, he finds the exact same thing when he visits those in jail.

It's no wonder we have so many people rejecting God. We Christians look to God the Father. When they hear about God the Father, they think of abuse, apathy, and someone who just doesn't care or left when things got tough.

Dear Lord, our Heavenly Father, help us to follow your example. Give us the tools to be a Father to the Fatherless. Help us to heal the broken families of this country and the world. We are weak Fathers to those who are lost. Give us your strength. Give us your Love so we can share with those who need us the most. We praise you. We Love you. We worship you....... Father! Amen!