This Father's Day I'd like to pay tribute to our son.
He's a U.S. Marine Corps officer serving aboard the USS Iwo Jima on an 8 mo. deployment in the Middle East. He spent some precious moments with his daughter Sydney, as you can see from the photos I took prior to his leaving.
What
a wonderful thing to see your children become parents, and then you get to observe the
tenderness, love and care they exhibit as they interact with their child – your
grandchild.
As children of the Living God, we have the perfect Heavenly
Father. When Jesus was speaking to the crowds about worry, wealth and judging,
He began teaching on asking and giving. In Matthew 7:9-11 Jesus states, “Or
what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a
stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being
evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your
Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” Our Father
knows best. He created us and knows are intimate needs. He alone can fill the
void within each heart.
The Apostle Paul often wrote to the churches he established with a deep love and concern, just as any good parent would. In I Thessalonians 2:10-12, Paul is addressing the church
about the tenderness with which he and others nurtured the congregation during
its infancy. He says, “You are witnesses, and God also, how devoutly and justly
and blamelessly we behaved ourselves among you who believe; as you know how we
exhorted, and comforted, and charged every one of you, as a father does his own
children, that you would have a walk worthy of God who calls you into His own
kingdom and glory.”
Then in I Timothy, Paul writes to the young preacher in a
most affectionate way: “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of
God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope, To Timothy, my true son in
the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our
Lord.” Paul took Timothy under his wing and mentored him - often referring to him as a son. Later, in II Timothy 2:1-2 he pens, “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus, To Timothy, my beloved son: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.”
When difficulties and sinful habits made their way in to the young church at Corinth, Paul writes in I Corinthians 4:14-17,“I do not write these things
to shame you, but as my beloved children I warn you. For though you might have
ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in
Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. Therefore, I urge you,
imitate me. For this reason I have sent Timothy to you, who is my beloved and
faithful son in the Lord, who will remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach
everywhere in every church." Paul repeatedly emphasized
his emulation of Father God’s love and care for His church in his response to and
exhortation of believers in the first century.
This post is a "shout out" to our son Sean. I want to convey just how
proud we are of him in his role as father to his precious little girl.
Though he's on deployment until December, our prayers and best wishes are sent his way for a memorable Father's Day (via a surprise-packed Priority Mail box).
Enjoy this wonderful prayer by a well-known war hero...
A Father’s Prayer
Build me a son, O
Lord, who will be strong enough to know when he is weak, and brave enough to
face himself when he is afraid; one who will be proud and unbending in honest
defeat, and humble and gentle in victory.
Build me a son
whose wishbone will not be where his backbone should be; a son who will know
thee and that to know himself is the foundation stone of knowledge.
Lead him, I pray,
not in the path of ease and comfort, but under stress and spur of difficulties
and challenge. Here let him learn to
stand up in the storm; here let him learn compassion for those who fail.
Build me a son
whose heart will be clear, whose goal will be high; a son who will master
himself before he seeks to master other men; one who will learn to laugh, yet
never forget how to weep; one who will reach into the future, yet never forget
the past.
And after all
these things are his, add, I pray, enough of a sense of humor, so that he may
always be serious, yet never take himself too seriously. Give him humility, so that he may always
remember the simplicity of true greatness, the open mind of true wisdom, the
meekness of true strength.
Then I, his
father, will dare to whisper, “I have not lived in vain.”
~
Douglas MacArthur
Deborah is the author of a Christian
non-fiction book titled “Mission
Possible”. It is written for women who love the Lord Jesus, but their
spouse doesn’t share their passion. It will encourage and challenge the
reader to embrace God’s promises for their spouse and future together.
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