Becoming a Faithful Father, Not a Perfect One
James Waugh is located in Mustang, OK and has served as the Lead Minister at Lakehoma Church of Christ for the past 6 years. He has a combined 41 years of ministry experience and also currently serves as a Mustang City Councilman.
James can be found on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/jamesanddeb.waugh/.
Fatherhood is the greatest adventure of the human heart.
Have you ever felt guilty during a Father’s Day sermon – never living up to the preacher’s expectation?
I recognize the importance of fatherhood, but as a preacher myself, I stopped delivering ‘father’ sermons on Father’s Day. (I reserve those lessons for another time.) Why? Because too many individuals were not blessed with a ‘good’ father. They live with the hurt of emotional and sometimes physical abuse. And crafting a sermon around a ‘good father’s attributes’, leaves many dads feeling guilty – knowing they have not, or may never, obtain to such high standards.
Have you been there?
From the first time the pregnancy test is positive, we begin to wonder. “Will I be a good dad?” “Will I shape this child God has given me toward His intended direction?” And we cry out to our Heavenly Father, “Please help!”
Our goal is not to be perfect fathers, but to be faithful fathers. We all make mistakes in our parenting – too harsh, too lenient. We often push our children. We want them to become great – knowing our pushing reveals the unfulfilled expectations in our own lives. In truth, our pushing is more about us than it is about our sons and daughters. “How proud would we be if our son or daughter were the next Olympic champion? Right!”
Each day God is doing his best to shape us as fathers into the image of Christ with ever increasing glory. And as we are shaped and formed into his image, we are charged with doing the same for the next generation. Fatherhood is the greatest adventure of the human heart. The responsibility of raising faithful, self-reliant children is a task which must not be taken lightly.
“Yet, O LORD, you are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.” - Isaiah 64:8
For those of us who have been through the parenting journey, (In reality, one’s parenting journey never ends.) we look back and take stock. Hindsight is the only way to assess one’s parenting skills. While in the fog of the ‘parenting-grind’ we catch glimpses – telltale signs of our shaping prowess. But it is hard to know – Right? The enemy is always nearby attacking our children from all angles. We live in a world whose influence on our children is immense!
As fathers, we are teachers and protectors. We are the disciplinarians and the counselors. We are to shape while being shaped by our Father.
Therefore, make the best use of your time. The years are short and fly by quickly. Your children will be out of the house before you know it. Make every effort to give them a foundation built on the Word of God. He is the only One who can give them eternal life.
My encouragement… Do the work! Seek out good fathers and ask for their guidance. Take them to lunch and seek their help. And above all, grow in your knowledge of our Heavenly Father.
“My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” - Isaiah 64:8
I end with the chorus of a children’s song I love, “He’s Still Working on Me.”
He’s still working on me
to make me what I ought to be
It took him just a week to make the moon and the stars
the sun and the earth and Jupiter and Mars
How loving and patient he must be
because he’s still working on me
May God bless you Fathers. Keep up the good work!
The Man Up podcast hopes to encourage men to connect with God and with other men. Our podcast will cover a range of topics that are relevant to our day and to the heart of man. It is the hosts’ desire to help men find and live out their divine purpose in life. We believe that all men and women are created in His Image and that our ultimate example is the Messiah. We hope you are encouraged to live a godly masculine life.
