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This Sunday is Father's Day so we want our meditation to center on them.
Two things we want to do: We want to talk to Christian fathers and we want to encourage
them.
Being a father is not the easiest thing in the world, believe me. For one thing, you
have to make a living. That is always before you. Their little mouths depending on you.
And all their needs — the shoes, the shirts, the food, the toys and so forth.
So every night dad prays, Give us this day our daily bread. But not only does Dad have
the pressure of making a living, he has a responsibility to model the Christian life
before his children.
Now, whether you are fathers or mothers or just onlookers, to be a model for your little
ones makes me tremble. Because as they say, we all have feet of clay.
And the preacher in Ecclesiastes 7:20 reminds us, For there is not a just man upon earth,
that doeth good, and sinneth not.
So we have a problem: Dad has to be an example to his children, yet he is just a plain old
sinner. And to complicate matters, the kids all know it.
But here's where the encouragement comes in. Read Psalm 1. The first word is "Blessed."
Blessed be the man. The women get blessed in Proverbs 31:28 — her children rise up
and call her blessed.
Well in Psalm 1, the dads get blessed, too, so thank God for that. But why are the fathers
blessed? This Psalm tells us why.
For one thing, he doesn't hang out with the wicked. That is, those who sit around and
scorn and ridicule the holy things of God. He parts company with them and instead his
delight is in the law of the Lord. That is, he reads his Bible, quotes his Bible to his
children. Patterns his life after the admonitions of the Lord to the best of his ability.
And you know what. When Dad does that, the children see he's sincere. He's honest. And
when he blunders, as we all do, they make allowances and overlook them because they
know Dad is genuine. He's honest. He's sincere.
I often wonder how many times I've failed my four children. But they always forgave
me because they knew I was genuine.
Fathers, listen: You're not always going to make the right decision. Or react to something
in the right manner or say just the right word. But take heart, God loves you and He
knows all about it. He wants you to be a good dad. And your children will know it, too.
It'll show up in the lives of those you love the most — your wife and your children.
And it'll pay off in due season because it may take a little while but down the road
you'll see the fruit of your labors. Like the Psalmist says, It bringeth forth his fruit
in season.
So, Happy Father's Day. You'll never be a perfect father but by the grace of God you'll
be a good father and a Christian father. A father you would call "blessed," because that's
what God calls you.