Download... June 19, 2011. Sunday Morning Service. Bro. Danny Sanders.
TEXT: PROVERBS 20:7 The just man walketh in his integrity: his children are blessed after him. A father has a huge opportunity, (if he lives right before his children, family, friends,etc.,) by being an example and blessing. For in living right himself, he is more blessed in a potential for his children to also live right.
LUKE 2:40 And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him. It probably can be said of every Christian father that it would be said also of his children.... “And the child grew and waxed strong, filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.”...
Proverbs 17:6 Children's children are the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers. In “healthy families” we love our children, grandchildren,..and our children love back those parents and grandparents.
Bro Danny Sanders asked some of the BST teachers to pose some questions to their class,..then he shared this morning, the “non sugar coated” answers he received from them.
Questions were asked according to the ages, that which was most appropriate.
Young primary children (6 years old) were asked,..(in the voice of a child);
”Daddy is__________”
Teenagers were asked....”I believe that role of the father is______________”
Young adults/married were asked... “My father influenced me in the following way(s)____________”
Those we hold in high esteem,... the Golden Pillars were asked....”What I most remember about dad______________”
Their answers were;
1)He was saved at 64,.. and died shortly and suddenly after.
2)He was quiet, hard working, and loved his family.
3)Although not saved, was a good father and provider,..wish he had gotten saved.
4)My father died when I was young,..I wish my father had gotten saved.
5)“My father was hard working, loving, and outgoing.”
6)“My dad was a just man, fair in all, a good provider for our family of 8 boys and 1 girl.”
7)“A good provider, though he never took us anywhere,..other than that, he was good and I love him.”
8)“My father had the most welcoming smile, heartfelt hug, and could take a neglected property, coupled with a vision, and fill it with overwhelming color.”
9) "Whatever my father was interested in, he put his whole heart into it."
10) "My father never found God, to my knowledge, but was honest in his business affairs and expected his children to do likewise. He was a strict disciplinarian, and expected obedience without constant correction,..and laziness was forbidden."
11) "My father was very young when he married my mother, I wasn’t raised by him, I wish he had been saved."
Bro Danny Sanders shared that, to his knowledge, he had saved every Birthday and Father’s Day card he has ever received from his children. He then shared also a relevant poem for this mornings subject. Many years ago his daughters had come home from Sunday school class with a poem titled “Tools For the Trade.”
Tools For The Trade
God gave you tools for the trade
He gave you two eyes to see where your child might go wrong
And feet to lead them safely through
Hands ..to hold their hands
And lips to say, ..“I love you”
Arms to hold them when they are afraid
Time to wait,..until they are calm
Ears to hear “between the lines”
And tears to cry, when they’re gone
Please do your best, ..please don’t forget
God gave you tools for the trade.
He gave you knees for playing, and also praying
That God would watch over your child
And at times they can’t say it, ..they still need to hear it
“I love you,”..with a smile
Please do your best,.. please don’t forget
God gave you.. tools for the trade.
I have heard it said, it is often the mother a child loves, but the dad he follows. As Bro Danny “sees” that, it places a tremendous responsibility on fathers, ..doesn’t it? He testified that he would be lying if he did not confess that he sometimes feels very ill equipped for the job. Isn’t this a common feeling and concern amongst any good human father? Haven’t you felt that way in the past? Fortunately we have been blessed though, with many, many examples out of God’s word, those that have gone before us, and those that are even present with us this morning. And.. God’s word helps us understand that our "children are an heritage of the Lord."
Psalms 127:3-5 3 Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. 4 As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. 5 Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.
God places great value on children,..and so should we! The poem just read, essentially defines a father as a “builder.” You will shape what your children become.
Back to those answers to the questions for 6 year old children (3 only were received). These answers come from both those in the church, and outside in the community.
(remember.. their answers depict how their little minds “see it” ..their reality..the voice of a child)
Those shared follow...
“My Daddy is_________”
1. “in jail”
2. “my grandpa is old but cool”,
3. “my daddy is nice,..because he bought me a pool”
Ephesians 6:4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. A nurturing atmosphere is one where we build trust.,..by exercising faith. Our children should see us call on God when;
1. we are sick
2. in financial need
3. needing “direction”
4. troubled in our “heart and mind”
..And etc. ...As a father, we need to “make good” on our promises to our children.
Hebrews 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. What God is saying here, “you can count on me”..He will not leave us, so appreciate that with contentment. We as good fathers need to be careful what we promise. Life is unpredictable. If you make a promise,..you need to be there for them, and keep it.” It will have much negative impact when you do not keep them, and/or are not there for them.
In illustration, Bro Danny relayed an incident of an earthquake in a place of 4 minutes long, and measuring 6.8. A lot of devastation. With one of the students of a school much affected, a boy’s last heard and remembered promise from his father was “I will always be there for you, ...no matter what.” When it came to the father’s attention of the school being one of the harder hit structures, he was quickly on the scene to excavate his son along with the other children, from all the rubble they were buried underneath. 8 hours,.. 12 hours,.. 24 hours,.. and finally 36 hours when he finally heard his son’s voice. The son was heard, “Dad,..it’s me,..I told the others not to worry that my dad had given me a promise.” The heavenly Father has given us a promise also.( Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.) 14 out of 33 children survived that earthquake, because of the determination of this man (and others) to persevere, to keep his promise. Children “saved” (not just one) because a father kept his promise. Jesus as our example kept many promises of hope, love, instruction, etc. One legacy Bro Danny wants to leave his children, is the faithfulness of the promises of God.
John 14:1-3 1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. Let not your mind be troubled this morning. God keeps His promises. This is a message for all His children. God is real, loving,... and faithful to teach and instruct.
Fathers “consider” what your relationship with your spouse is teaching your children.
Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; One of the most important characteristics of a good father, is his relationship with his wife. Children watching that relationship, are hopefully learning about selfless and mature love. Hopefully they will see integrity, which is love that is faithful even ..when no one else is looking or knows. Children and people are watching, and will know whether you are virtuous, compassionate, understanding and forgiving. We receive mercy, not justice from God. Our children deserve to receive mercy,..and not always justice. Those qualities need to
planted deep enough within each child's heart. Then hopefully we will “see” our offspring live out those same qualities. If we want them to show kindness, respect, etc., they need to see a father show that towards his wife. If we expect our children to listen, are We taking time to listen?
*Back now, to “some”(of the many) answers to the questions to BST classes,..this time from the young married people;
The question to them was;
My father influenced me in the following ways:
1) to be a friend to those, who might not have any friend
2) treat your spouse as though you’re her biggest fan
3) To be committed to taking care, of the needs of my family
4) to love and honor my wife
5) to love and honor God
6) led me to God, by living a godly example
7) to thrive under intense pressure
8) to properly love my future wife, by loving my mom
9) to always finish what I started
10) he set the example to work in God’s kingdom
11) to save my money, and be wise in my finances
12) set the example to do the household projects,..ourselves
13) allowed me to be myself, while teaching me right from wrong.
14) had many discussions about politics, news events, etc., and generated a love in me for the outdoors
15) my dad actions influenced me not how to be,.. but rather how not to be
16) that our house is God’s house, and let Him use it as He pleases
17) that in a garden you water that which you want to grow, and if there is something in your life you don’t want to grow, ..don’t feed it
18) to be positive, to love good, and be thankful for what we have in life
19) to try and listen to what others have to say, and try and learn from them
20) to think about the best of people in different situations,..to give people the benefit of the doubt
21) my dad influenced me towards the world, by loving worldly ways, and I tended to look up to him [Bro Danny asked here..You don’t think we have an impact on our child’s life?] Thank God my mom loved God, and helped influence me in the right.
22) to be a good worker, to have an open mind, to have good morals, to have respect for authority, to give my best in everything
23) to be patient, to listen before I speak, to listen to the Whole story before making any “judgments” and to have a generous and gentle heart
24) always keep God first, a job isn’t worth doing, unless it’s done right, you need to also talk to mom, and if you need advice, listen to the voice of experience
Father’s let us teach our children good life lessons by example, and the word of God.
Consider all life’s lessons we bestow upon our children by using God’s Word ...of examples: Let’s look here to Noah’s example;
Genesis 6:5-8,22 5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. 7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. 8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
First and foremost Noah had a relationship with God. Our children also need to see in us a relationship with God. Noah showed the importance of taking directions (verse 22) Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he.
Hear, listen, obey, and etc. The ones that prove to be the best workers are the ones who readily listen. For the greater good.. we need to face the opposition, like Noah did in his time, as an example. Bro Danny exhorted us that we need to be aware of what it means to live for Christ today,.. as a young person at school. It is harder than you in earlier generations have ever had it. It would help to understand before witnessing, what they are going through. Noah was faithful,..if he hadn’t been faithful, where would we be today? “Sticktoitiveness” was shown by Noah, working on that ark a full one hundred years. Remember, your children will become,..what you lived.
*Back again to those answers from a BST class, this time from the teenagers.
The question,..
“The role of the father is__________”
1) be logical
2) have a job(s)
3) to protect
4) to provide for the family
5) pay the bills
6) to do the wife’s “honey do” list ...(lol )
7) to love you
8) be understanding
9) be supportive
10) be the head of the home
What do you want to leave as a legacy? Raising a family can be stressful, demanding,, etc. It’s hard to believe how soon your home will become an “empty nest,” which it will become, when “they decide” to leave home.
Luke 15:11-23 The separation was not determined by the father. Verse 13 And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. One day your children will respond to how you lived. It will be easier to let them go, if you have been a good role model, provider, and loving. Our heavenly Father loves His children whether they make a good,.. or bad decision. Not the bad decisions, ...but in spite of them. Make sure they know,..”I will never leave or forsake you.” Show your arms to be open to welcome them with love. 20 And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.
What Do You Want To Leave As Your Legacy?
