When our kids were growing up, I didn’t have much to give them. I was usually busy with a ton of things. One day I thought of something that would work for me. I decided to give each of my three kids thirty minutes once a week. Usually on a Thursday or Saturday, I would set up my timer for thirty minutes and then we’d pray and have talks about relative issues with each child. We’d learn the books of the Bible, review verses and then wrestle! We’d have fun! Those few minutes helped us bond. As they grew older, wrestling was replaced by basketball or volleyball, etc. Those were moments that will never return. The kids are all grown and two of them have kids of their own. Life is precious and if we’re not careful, it slips from us. We don’t need to hold on to the past but it’s good to continue creating new memories and special moments together.
So, what would I like for Father’s Day? I’d like to know that my kids call me once a week to ask ‘How are you Pa?’ How’s it going? How are you feeling today? What are you working on now? To have talks about …the time that…etc. To me, Father’s Day is about honoring your dad. It’s about thanking him for lessons learned, for moments spent together. No, not all moments were great-they never are, but we learn that life isn’t flawless. We learn that God placed us in a certain home for reasons. Granted, some kids have or have had horrible upbringings and I assure you, God will deal with that and with those involved. He’s adamant about how we treat little ones-and older ones.
Sometimes, we break our fathers’ hearts. Generally, young folks have something to look forward to in their lives but older people don’t always share those hope for their own lives. For many, life could be senseless or hopeless and that’s when they need their kids there. Kids can lift the spirit of their parents; they can give them a sense of hope and inspiration to go forth. Remember, your father will not be around forever.
Take God, for example. We can break His heart millions of times a day every day. We shatter His hopes for us when we stay away or don’t honor Him. We cause Him to cry (Luke 19:41). We cause Him to miss us (Luke 15:11-32). Even as Christians we can stay away too long. God longs for those ‘thirty minutes’ of fun and fellowship with Him. He longs to hear from us. He wants to know our dreams and aspirations. He longs for those plans we have; He wants to see us use our creativity for His glory. God wants His children to talk to Him; to reminisce about those times when…He wants us to honor Him not only with our words, but with our actions like with time spent in His presence-or with our parents. God, will always be there-He’s eternal.
Call your dad this weekend. Talk to God. Tell them both what they mean to you. Talk of special moments shared together.
Happy Father’s Day!