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TRUST JESUS TODAY

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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: Father (as in paternal parent, not God) (04/10/08)
LORD! MAY THEIR ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS.

In one of the stores where Father's Day gifts were being sold, a remarkable, framed picture caught my attention. It portrayed a man standing his small son on his shoulders. They both had their backs to the viewer and were facing a basketball net. The son who barely reached below the basket, held the ball over his head. By his Dad's help that child was ready to score his very first goal!
On the upper right side of the picture, printed in big white letters were these words:

A FATHER IS SOMEONE YOU LOOK UP TO, NO MATTER HOW TALL YOU GROW.

My heart rejoiced as I saw this striking portrait. It reminded me of so many dads these days---those whom our all Mighty God has blessed with faith…They spend much affection on their sons and daughters. They keep them happy, comforted, loved and satisfied…giving them high self-esteem

While some earthly fathers, are always preparing their beloved youngsters in complete readiness for adulthood, they literally, lovingly and figuratively place each child “between the shoulders”as mentioned in Deuteronomy 33:12.
It is surprising how many of the neglected children of today can identify with the little boy in the picture; they daily need a father's kind heart and hand to help them reach a set goal.

I recollect the words of Jesus who said in the Word that the purpose of His coming was to give us life more abundantly. Jesus amazingly invited the people of the earth to ask for support. He taught saying: "If ye then being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven, give good things to them that ask him?"(Mathew 7:11 KJV) In other words, Our Redeemer is inspiring the Christians almost shouting “Come on people! Do not be ashamed to ask for daily direction for your family! This is free!”

What then is it that a father needs to learn from our heavenly Teacher? Every single day he needs and deserves an encounter with our Lord of Grace, to seek God’s appropriate help.

As parents, we are just like that little girl whose grandma asked how she happened to fall out of bed. She replied, "because I slept too close to the place I got in."
We need to move on from the infant stage with our children when we started with them as babies. We need to move closer, go deeper into the knowledge of our Holy God, in order to claim for them the support they would need later in their life. It is their right by birth.

Therefore, we can pray that some fathers in this world may be helped to pass on God's rules to their own offspring with these few helpful points:

1- Show them genuine love …This must truly spring from a faith-based character…sons and daughters must have an indisputable memory of Dad’s example to carry with them through their future. Similarly to give a worthwhile example to pass on to their own children…and to the needy children in their life.

2- When a child refers to his parent as “Father”, he or she declares the responsibility of fatherhood in the open; and the authentic feeling in the dad’s image is reflected, nourished and cherished forever. This is what they will use in future years to educate their own family.

3- Fathers…Never doubt your sons! YOU are as able as the father of the prodigal son whom our Lord Jesus gave as an example in Luke 15.. May we gladly open our arms in embrace to our loved, uncontrolled ones while they are growing within our homes?

4- How about a sensible love to our teenagers----like God’s love? How about a balanced kind of love…meaning, asking God’s help “Please Jesus…may I learn only to satisfy my children’s needs. Lord helps me also as a reasonable father, to discipline them regarding their greeds.”

Every month of June, while we celebrate Father’s Day…may we be inspired to pray:
“Dear God, help Dads to remind their young ones, of You Lord and Master, who are their constant Traveling Companion in this world. Lord, help Dads to teach their sons and daughters how to ‘focus on God’ to get the necessary help in raising their own children gloriously in Your Name---according to Your commandments…Amen”
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Member Comments
Member
Date
Tim Pickl
04/17/08
The Title caught my attention--this is an excellent Devotion, especially as we get closer to Father's Day. This is a perfect line, “Please Jesus…may I learn only to satisfy my children’s needs. Lord helps me also as a reasonable father, to discipline them regarding their greeds.”
Sara Harricharan
04/17/08
This is encouraging and inspiring for all the Dad's out there! It's especially great with father's day coming up-I loved how you sort of made it into a devotional at the end with using the numbers and ending with a prayer. Very nicely done! ^_^