FATHER'S DAY THOUGHTS

A father is not always the emotionless side of parenthood who substitutes toughness for tears and firmness for feelings. The masculine side of the human family is quite capable of tenderness, love and sympathetic understanding. A father does not have to be a proverbial bull in life's emotional china shop. He does not have to be a ruffian to establish the authority of his fatherhood. He can be a calm and quiet source of power. He can be a stable influence in the midst of a whole family full of disorientations[sic].

Sometimes he may laugh and again he may cry, but all the time there are feelings as real as life itself. A father can be the source of his child's need to be caressed. He can instill a sense of masculine integrity in his sons and encourage his daughters to develop their feminine mystique. He teaches his children to respect the things that are respectful and to keep themselves unspotted from the world. A father plows the furrow in which his children will walk. If the row becomes crooked, he teaches them the value of making it straight again.

A father does not have to be perfect, but he will work hard to perfect his skills of fatherhood. His greatest reward will be in seeing his children succeed in the art of living. A father will offer his children's mother a place in the sun. He will create a haven of security around their love nest. He will give her a sense of pride in being the queen of their home. His children will observe his love for their mother and follow his example.

A father may not be a theologian nor an expositor of the gospel, but he can instill a consciousness of God in the family he helped to create. His tools for teaching may be lacking in refinement but his lessons in word and deed will be profoundly effective. For better or for worse, a father cannot escape his role as teacher. A faithful father is never so far away from home that home is not near to his heart. He finds satisfaction and fulfillment in sharing life with those he loves. His identity comes from being family where he is respectfully given the title of "father." Yet, he is never so preoccupied with his own castle that he ignores his ultimate home with the Father in heaven.

Excerpts from "Another Perspective", an article by Dr. Calvin S. Metcalf

WHY??

It is a common human tendency to complain when we are faced with difficult circumstances.  When things go wrong we are prone to ask "Why?"  We want someone to give answers to the complicated issues of our lives.  We want to blame someone for the hurt and misery our problems have created.  Often it is God who is the recipient of our frustration. The mystery of misfortune leaves us with nothing but bitter confusion as to why God allows such pain. It is as though we believe God is the author of all our trouble.

Is it not strange that in adversity we are filled with questions, while we quietly accept our blessings?  Surely there is as much mystery to life's good fortune as there is to life's tribulation.  Yet, seldom do we ever hear someone puzzled about his or her well-being.  Is it because we take life's rewards for granted?  Do we subtly assume that we are entitled to reap the benefits of life's resources? Is God obligated to prosper us if we are good?  What about the prosperity of those who are not good? Actually are any of us worthy of the happiness and blessings which come our way?

Just as we cannot grasp the mystery of misfortune, we cannot solve the secret of good fortune.  Grace is so amazing and so divine.  Yet, it comes to us in physical as well as spiritual ways.  May the sheer surprise of life's blessings find us grateful and humble.  God forbid that we take pride in that which is not within our power to produce. "Every good gift cometh from above."  We do well to ponder that mystery also.

SELF DENIAL

The Christian life carries with it the awesome obligation of self-denial.  It proposes that personal ambition and public glory are to be minimized in our struggle to achieve the Godly life.  The New Testament leads us to believe that Christians are a people who make themselves expendable for the cause of Christ.  Their hunger for acceptance is met in the call of God to be a servant people.  Their need for recognition is satisfied within the fellowship of folk who have found no glory except in the cross of Christ.

Denying oneself is a demanding discipline because the normal tendency is to look out for ourselves.  At times we seem to be incurable parasites drawing from every organization and personal acquaintance all the emotional and material benefits we can acquire.  Even the attention we require at church becomes a hindrance to our servant witness.  One of Satan's most subtle maneuvers is his ability to lead us away from cross-bearing to glory seeking.  Such an attitude always interrupts the kingdom of God.

People who seek to use the church for their own emotional advantage will eventually abuse the church by becoming critical of it when people of the church fail to feed their egos.  There is no substitute for self-denial.  It is the only way the cause of Christ is properly promoted.  If in the context of grace we are not motivated to give ourselves away we will never know the joy of sacrifice and surrender.  A seed must fall into the ground and die if new life is to emerge.  Somehow the joy of new life removes every need to complain about the death to self which it requires.

Growing Through Adversity

"Leaning on the everlasting arms of God..."

Deep within the valley of despair, we are often conditioned to find the green pastures of spiritual nourishment and the still waters of God's grace.  Perhaps we are never nearer God than when our hearts are heavy and our mental resources seem exhausted.  Too often, in the proud world of our own achievements, we develop an arrogance which denies the need for faith.  In the mirror of our own self-importance, we fail to see the image of God in which we were created.  How blessed we are when circumstances crush our haughty spirits and give us a realistic picture of ourselves and our world.

Although God does not cause our moments of depression, He is prepared to use them for our growth.  With whatever it takes to get our attention, God is ready to lead us on a journey of grace.  Our most profound thoughts and invigorating insights are not the product of frivolity.  In serious and solemn reaction to life's burdens, we seek the mind of Christ.  We are conditioned to think God's thoughts only when we recognize our desperate need for a divine perspective.  In humble recognition of our own inadequacies, we place our hand in the nail-scarred hand of Jesus.  From His submission to the Father, we learn the significance of our own surrender.  In His pain, we see the redemptive value of our own suffering.  In many ways, we see a cross running through the complexity of life.  Sooner or later, we all face denial, betrayal and crucifixion of one kind or another.  Life has a variety of ways of imposing its penalties upon us.

Our greatest response is to accept adversity as an opportunity to be creative and flexible.  God has equipped us with a capacity to deal with life's obstacles.  Of course, there will be times when despondency and despair are inevitable.  These moments need not be devastating, however, if we see them as a part of God's humbling process where submission and trust begin.  Our somber meditation may be a time of greater learning which leads to greater joy.

Picky People!

When Jesus said, "judge not that you be not judged," He was encouraging us to review the repercussions of being judgmental.  Harsh and critical folk make themselves vulnerable to public scrutiny.  The kind of evaluations we make of others is usually the kind of evaluation we receive.  In other words, "what goes around, comes around." If we are "picky, picky" people then, most likely, we are going to be picked at with a similar pickiness.  Opinionated folk who are always making the latest pronouncements on everything are required to live up to their impressive knowledge.

Being judgmental implies a righteousness most of us do not have.  Our inconsistencies become glaringly obvious when we try to advertise the discrepancies of others.  No one is more eager to dig up our dirt than those whose dirt we have exposed.  It seems to be a human tendency to return dirt for dirt.

Probably the most obnoxious people we know are those who are always trying to set other people straight.  To be honest, we often feel a little satisfaction when the cracks in their armor are revealed.  It is not a healthy way to live because our focus is on the behavior of others rather than on our own behavior.  We get sidetracked into peripheral issues which greatly hinder our opportunities to witness.  Our most effective sharing of Christ is not done from a super-Christian mentality but from a humble disposition of shared grace.  A superior attitude is a breeding ground for bitterness and resentment.

Jesus knew that the only way to stop the cycle of hate and verbal retaliations was to discourage a judgmental disposition.  Christian love, fellowship and witness are greatly enhanced when we resign from the "god business."   Personal relationships thrive when we are honest about who we are and kind about who others are.  The truth of the matter is we never know enough to be judges.  At best, our opinions are at the mercy of limited facts.  Perhaps our most wholesome attitude toward the sins of others comes from the lips of our Lord.  "Neither do I condemn you.  Go and sin no more."