Happy Dad’s Day! As we celebrated dads this morning, Pastor Alex focused our attention on the blessing that fathers are designed to be for the kingdom of God. Dads are called to invest in their families and equip the next generation to know and love God.
The problem of “fatherlessness” is rampant in our society. 20 million children are considered fatherless. One in four children live without a dad in their home. 2.7 million children have a parent in prison, and 93% of those are dads. 90% of runaway children come from fatherless homes. 88% of imprisoned kids come from fatherless homes. These stats paint a sad picture of the state of our homes and fathers in America.
But God is able to equip you to be the father he has called you to be. We need to embrace our identity as sons of God and experience God’s fatherly love towards us in order to be faithful fathers in our own homes. This begins with embracing “dad” as a verb, not just a noun – being a dad is a lifestyle not just a title.
Alex pointed our attention to Deuteronomy 6:7 to point out some specific and practical ways to be a faithful dad. “You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”
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Be a broken record. This verse says to “teach them diligently.” The idea behind sit/walk/lie down/rise is that we should have a lifestyle of teaching God’s truth. Dads should take every opportunity to teach their children about God.
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Be present. The greatest cause of fatherlessness is divorce. Being physically, relationally, and emotionally present is critical because presence is comforting. Dads should savor the time they have with their children and invest every moment.
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Make your home a mikdash me’at. In Judaism, after the temple was destroyed, every family was encouraged to make their home into a mini temple – in Hebrew, a mikdash me’at. Homes became sacred places where families met God together. The table became the altar upon which the family met God and each other. Dads should be intentional about bringing the family together for dinner as a holy moment that is about more than food.
Pastor Alex closed with a challenge to seize the moment because the moment will soon be gone. He challenged all fathers to rise up and “Play the man” by faithfully leading their family. Francis Chan says, “Our greatest fear should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.”
Questions to consider:
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Talk about the “broken records” in your house. What are things you or your family members say all the time? What are some new intentional things you can begin to say more often in your home?
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Is being present to the members of your family easy or difficult for you? Talk about specific ways you can pursue real presence with one another.
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Where might be you and your family be succeeding at things that don’t matter? Talk about how you might shift your focus towards faithfully pursuing things that matter most.
