Fathers

God of Kindness

/ pastorpete51 / Leave a comment

 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant. 1 Corinthians 13:4

“You promised to take them on a picnic!” my grandfather boomed with his deep ship’s captain voice. “You must be kind and you have to keep your promises!” About a year after Nancy and I married we stayed for a few months with my grandparents while I was unemployed. I not only adored my grandparents but I asked to go there because my they were the only ones I knew would welcome us without question. So Nancy and I, along with our two month old son went there until I could get a job and save money for an apartment.

I was stunned to hear the anger and disappointment in my grandfather’s voice. What hurt the most was knowing that he was absolutely right. As a new husband and father I got the part about working hard, and being willing to sacrifice, but what I missed somewhere along the way was learning to be kind.

“I’m sorry!” I blurted out to my grandfather. “Don’t just tell me, tell them.” He answered lowering his voice just a bit. Then as he turned and began to leave  he stopped and added “Remember that a gentleman is always kind.”

Some fruits of the Spirit, like joy and peace can be enjoyed in solitude but for patience and kindness we need other people. Kindness is not just about me, it is remembering to keep my promises and get packed for the picnic today!

Thanks Dad!

/ pastorpete51 / Leave a comment

At a press conference when he was still the mayor of New York , Rudy Giuliani was asked how hard it was being both the mayor and a father. His reply began ” Being mayor is easy…”

I am so thankful to God for my Dad and I am still amazed at how easy he made being a father seem!

There is a verse in the Bible that says to teach our children God’s word while we are doing just the ordinary things of life. That is how my Dad lived. Whether he was washing the shop floor, taking us out to eat or sitting next to us in church he was patient, thoughtful and kind. He never yelled at me, called me names or made me feel small even when I deserved it. I learned more about God and how to be a father by watching Dad drive through New York at rush hour than I got from 1,000 sermons. Thanks Dad for all the wonderful memories. I’ll see you just a little later. Happy Father’s Day!

The Prodigal Father

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

Prodigal- spending resources wastefully or recklessly.

This Father’s Day I can really identify with the father in the prodigal son story. It is not that I have been always loving with our own two sons but rather I would have loved it if they could have just gotten along for more than 10 minutes!

The younger son in the story Jesus tells is selfish, manipulative and foolish. It doesn’t seem to bother him at all how his father feels and he doesn’t even take the time to say goodbye to his brother.

But somewhere in the distant city where he falls below even the bottom of the barrel he wakes up. Suddenly he gets just how much he has failed and he returns home a broken young man.

On the other side of the county the older and more obedient brother is toiling away in his father’s fields. As the afternoon comes to a close he hears the sound of music and dancing from some sort of outdoor celebration. As he gets closer one of the men who works with him on the farm brings him news of his brother’s return and the restoration his father had given him.

Wow! Talk about mad! If it had been possible there would have been steam coming out of his nostrils! He could not believe that his Dad had been so foolish to give the younger brother the money in the first place. Now with this wretched failure crawling home he definitely has no idea why his Dad would celebrate. “Celebrate!” he probably muttered. “I’d like to wring his neck!”

What the good son along with most of the rest of us can’t understand is the prodigal wastefulness of our father. Our Heavenly Father’s heart is just so off the wall that we can scarcely imagine what he is thinking of.

But the father in the story had more in mind than just giving his robe his ring and his shoes to his son. Most of all in the middle of the feasting and joy the prodigal father longed that through his over-the-top forgiveness he would see the healing and restoration of everyone in his family.

Whether you are a father or not today remember that all of us have a heavenly Father who like the prodigal father longs to recklessly give us his heart and see a full restoration between us as well as all the rest of His family!