By Tyson Thorne

June 12, 2014
 
 

FathersDay large

What could be so important as to interrupt our series on the Acts of the Apostles? Father’s Day which falls on this coming Sunday. Why is it so important? Because Dad’s need to be encouraged.

In a startling bit of research conducted by the Christian Business Men's Committee it was shown that when a father is an active believer, there is about a seventy-five percent likelihood that his children will also become active believers. Yet if only the mother is a believer, this likelihood drops to fifteen percent. Which is why its so very disappointing the statistics show dads spend on average between 38 seconds and two minutes a day of alone time with their kids. No one can build a legacy in that little time.

Because dad’s play an important role in the lives of their children it is imperative that a father is trustworthy. If his children trust him, then they will trust what he says about Jesus as well. My oldest friend and his daughter, who was about four at the time, were staying at a hotel out of town. His wife was visiting a friend and he was scheduled to speak at a conference the next morning. My friend was asleep in one bed, his daughter in the other, when it began to rain. Thunder began to shake the very foundation of the building. It was a terrifying thunderstorm and his daughter became afraid and began to cry. She wanted to crawl into daddy’s bed, and daddy just wanted to sleep! He told his daughter everything would be okay, that the thunder wouldn’t hurt them and she should try to sleep. Immediately the girl settled down. She said, “okay, I trust you daddy” just before drifting off again.

While the apostle Paul doesn’t tell us much about his life before meeting Jesus, it has been noticed by some scholars that the position he held in Judaism would have required him to have at least been married and likely have had children. Of course exceptions to rules are hardly rare, but if he was married with children what happened to them? He never makes mention of them and it may be that his following Jesus became the catalyst for his family leaving him. This is all conjecture, however. One fact that is anything but conjecture is how Paul related to Timothy. He even calls himself Timothy’s spiritual father. Their relationship wasn’t one of equals or friendship, it was father and son.

As a young man being quick to learn as he was to act, I can only imagine how Timothy must have looked up to Paul. Paul had been shipwrecked, lost at sea, and had been stoned and left for dead three times! Paul was larger than life. Even so, in every way Paul became a father to Timothy, and I believe it was the events of Acts 16.1-.4 that changed the course of Timothy’s life. It was Paul’s steadfast obedience and delight in following God that so captivated Timothy that he followed Paul’s example and traveled, preached and even pastored a church. Timothy was obedient to Paul because Paul was obedient to God. That’s a lesson every father could learn.

So in the end what makes a great dad? He must first be a follower of Jesus. He needs to spend enough time with his children that they know they can trust him. Once trust is earned, they will mimic his walk in life – for better or worse. And if he himself is following the voice of God, his children will learn to do the same. If you need proof this works, look no further than my father who served in church as a Sunday school teacher, usher and deacon. His example influenced my life of service to God, and in the end that is the best legacy a father can give.

 

 
 
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