byOne of the most predominant challenges among children in this generation is the challenges of stable fatherhood. Many kids prefer their mothers more to their fathers because the fathers don’t do well in their lives. One time, my local church pastor went to minister to some prison inmates, and he felt led to pray for those whose fathers were absent in their lives. To his shock, about 95% of the almost 700 men gathered in the meeting responded to this call for prayer. That meant that many of them ended up in prison because there weren’t stable father figures in their lives to bring them in the fear and admonishment of the Lord as the Bible commands in Ephesians 6:4. Today being Father’s Day, many aren’t seeing the worth to celebrate their fathers because they see them as failures, and you can’t blame them.
Honour your father despite his failures.
The Bible says in Ephesians 6:2-3 (NIV) that,
[2] “Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise—[3] “so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”
Can you meditate on this verse for a few minutes? I know you may have a thousand reasons to say you disregard your parents, especially your own father. Maybe he abandoned your mum when she got pregnant. Maybe he sodomised you, or perhaps he was a drunkard, alcoholic or weed smoker. But when God gave this command, way back to Moses in the Old Testament, He knew everything about the failures of parents. He already saw how wicked humanity became from Noah’s time, so much so that He wiped off a whole generation. So your reasons to dishonour your parents, especially your father, are never enough to obey what His Word says.
Maybe you never got the opportunity to see your father. But if you can identify just one man who gave you money or contributed to your upbringing, honour him. Just do it even if it hurts you.
On this glorious Father’s Day, give your dad a gift. It doesn’t have to be money or an overly expensive product. Just a “thank you for bringing you into the world” note to him can be so encouraging. Maybe you never got the opportunity to see your father, so you don’t know how to do what I am saying today. But if you can identify just one man who gave you money or contributed to your upbringing, honour him. Just do it even if it hurts you. God knows relationships are complex, but don’t go to the extent of disregarding what the Word says.
Dear man, submit to Christ.
Now, shifting the focus from Dads to men in general. Dear man, submit to Christ. This looks simple, but many men overlook how powerful and safe living in submission to God is for their lives. Many men who are failures to their families are victims of not obeying this scriptural command. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 11:3 (NKJV) that,
“… the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.”
That means when it comes to God’s established hierarchy of authority, the woman is supposed to submit to the man, but the man is supposed to also submit to Christ. That is why marrying a godly man as a godly woman is a non-negotiable decision you must make. God is more concerned about the impact on future generations of your choices today than the butterflies in your stomach you may call “love.” If you want to marry as a woman, don’t marry for money; marry for God’s sake. And as a man, build your relationship with God very well. You won’t know God intimately by automation or merely attending church on Sundays. No! Get extended time to be with Him alone.
Lead your home
As a married man reading this, you may have determined in your heart not to repeat your dad’s mistakes, which is good. But it won’t happen by merely making that decision in your mind. You need to work it out. Lead your home. Let your house serve the Lord–from yourself to your littlest kid.
Happy Father’s Day.
