A Father's Love

Father's Day 1984 (Photo credit: -will wilson-)

As a father has compassion on his children,
    so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him...

Psalm 103:13

New International Version (NIV)

        On this day I offer my salute and solidarity to all fathers.  It's easy to father a child, but it can be a tough job to be a father to that child.   To be a good father requires time, patience, and a great deal of sacrifice.  Fathering is not just a matter of putting money into hands in order to relieve oneself of the responsibility of actual fathering.   A truly good father gives himself.

          A head of the household should provide support in the form of finances or in some cases the actual full-time care and nurturing of the children.  We live in times when roles are sometimes reversed, but no man who helps to bring children into this world should in any way consider himself absolved of any the responsibilities of caring for those children.

           Even if you are a hard-working dad who has little time at home, you should make your presence known as the father.   Love your kids as best you can, as strongly as you can, and as tenderly as you can.  Your children are an investment in the future.   What you put into their upbringing is the return you will get later.  Invest wisely.

            The father as head of household should use God the Father as a guide and behavioral model.  Even if you feel that you've been shortchanged in life, don't blame God.  He wants you to have all that you need in life.  Live as though God has provided everything for you because in actuality He has.  If you don't believe that then it may be time for a life reassessment.

             Set an example for your children.  Spend as much time with them as you can.  Get them involved in spiritual activities.   Read the Bible to them.  Pray with them.  And pray for them.

             God will provide your needs.  It's up to you to bring your faith.

 “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead?   Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?   If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Luke 11:11-13

New International Version (NIV)

How Well Does Self-Reliance Work?

Rock Gap Rd, West Virginia
 (Photo credit: D.Clow - Maryland)

As the deer pants for streams of water,
    so my soul pants for you, my God.

Psalm 42:1

New International Version (NIV)

        We are often encouraged to be self-sufficient, to rely on no one for help.  In one sense this concept is a good one.  Other people can be notoriously unreliable at times.  Government and society often allows those in need to slip through the cracks.   The world of big business can be very accommodating when trying to gain new customers, yet suspiciously silent if the customer's needs outweigh the company's profits.  

         A certain amount of self-sufficiency is not a bad goal for which to strive, but in our world it is a rather impractical idea that mostly exists in the realms of idealistic dreamers.  Few of us want to retreat on our own to live alone in the wilderness to subsist on what the Earth can provide and what our own ingenuity can muster.  I know that I'm not ready for that kind of lifestyle.  I enjoy civilization too much.

        But no matter how well we can sustain ourselves whether it be on our own or within the parameters of societal living, there is more than the comforts of our physical well-being to take into consideration.   We cannot neglect the spiritual needs that dwell innately within us.  We may think we are fine without God, living comfortably with others and believing that our mind holds all the answers and the power to a happy life.  However there is always an empty spot that can only be filled with that one thing necessary to having a complete life--God.

        God will provide.  Will you acknowledge that you need Him?   When the ultimate emptiness that is within you becomes evident to you, will you concede to letting God carry you to the life-giving Stream of Salvation.    When your body thirsts, you seek water.  When you are spiritually empty, what will you do?

 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.   I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.   I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

Philippians 4:11-13
New International Version (NIV)

Related articles

• The Hunger
• Is He?
• Never Hopeless - Psalms 42 & 43
• Are Christians Misusing and Misinterpreting This Wildly Popular Bible Verse?

Revelation by Flannery O'Connor

Everything That Rises Must Converge (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

He gathers up the poor from their dirt floors,
    pulls the needy from the trash heaps,
8 And places them among heads of state,
    seated next to the rulers of His people where they cannot be ignored.

Psalm 113:7-8

The Voice (VOICE)

        This past week on my main blog Tossing It Out I celebrated the highly influential author Flannery O'Connor's short story Revelation.  If you're not familiar with this great writer of Southern Literature, I encourage you to read some of her stories.  They're dark, cynical with doses of twisted humor.  The characters of these stories are typically racist people who are self-righteous and bigoted.   Most of them have ill-conceived ideas of God's grace and the salvation of Jesus Christ, but usually someone sees at least a glimmer of light during the life episodes we read about in the stories.

        Revelation provides an illustration of the verses I've featured in this week's A Few Words post. This is a story that you might enjoy taking the time to read if you enjoy good Christian fiction.   You can find the story online here.   I would rank O'Connor as one of the best writers of Christian Fiction.  Be forewarned that since her stories were written and take place during the 1950's and early 60's they may come across as offensive in terms of racial prejudice, but this is a realistic depiction of some of the people in that era.

          If you do read the story, I hope you will visit my post at Tossing It Out to let me know your thoughts.


So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.

Matthew 20:16

King James Version (KJV)

Related articles

• The Greatest Short Story Ever Written?
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Do You Lose Patience With God?

Road to heaven (Photo credit: fd)

Then people will say,
    “Surely the righteous still are rewarded;
    surely there is a God who judges the earth.”

Psalm 58:11

New International Version (NIV)

        Human time is a lot different than God time    After all God has spanned an eternity before this nanosecond that is our lives even came to be.   We think in years that in some ways seem like a long span until we start nearing the end.  Then the years fly until this life is over.

         There is a future eternity awaiting us.  A glorious eternity with Jesus Christ.  Our Lord wants all of us to be there with Him in that eternity.   He waits for you, not like the impatient wait we might experience at the DMV or the doctor's office, but the patient waiting of a loving Father who wants to see us come to Him.  Come to Him in eternal life.

          Are you ready to enter His Kingdom?

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

2 Peter 3:9

New International Version (NIV)

Related articles

• The Example of Patience
• Attributes of God ~ God is Patient
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Getting Past the Past

Been Crying (1) (Photo credit: Toni Blay)

He heals the brokenhearted
    and binds up their wounds.

Psalm 147:3

New International Version (NIV)

          There are some who seem to have reached some point in life when all purposeful future ends and their life is defined by an event or a series of events that happened in the past.  This negative aspect of their life takes over their existence so that it becomes the focal point of their thought and action.  Nearly everything they say or do comes down to something that happened in the past.

          Should a healthy existence end when a life trauma occurs?    Should we be defined by the bad things that have happened to us?   Is there ever a time when we need to let go of painful memories in order to adjust to functioning and interacting with others without a cloud of negativity surrounding us?

          Bad things happen to all of us.  For every bad thing that has happened to you, someone else has experienced something worse.  Continually living in that bad thing will not change what happened.   Always looking for sympathy and reassurance is like being addicted to a drug--you feel better for a while, but then you want more.   Would your life be better if you could let go of the bad feelings and stop hanging on to the pain?

         There are some things that cannot be forgotten, but they do not have to be continually turned over in the mind so that there is no escaping them.   The bad events of life are a part of history and that's where they need to stay.   They don't have to be our trauma of the present.  We should not be enslaved by a bad past.   Instead we should use this part of our life to raise our spirits, help others, and to glorify God.

           The future does not have to be the past.

But the Lord said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you,  for my power is made perfect in weakness.”  Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.  That is why,  for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

2 Corinthians 12:9-10

New International Version (NIV)

Related articles

• Weakness = Strength?
• Many are afflicted.....
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• Feeling despair? Read this.

Tell Your Mother You Love Her--and Mean It

Mothers' Day Cake crop (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Listen to your father who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old.

Proverbs 23:22

English Standard Version (ESV)

       Mother's Day is one of the days of the year when the most long distance calls are made, the most flowers are delivered, the most greeting cards are sent, and the most people go out to restaurants.  Treating Mom special is almost an obligatory rite for many on this day.   But shouldn't we make every day like Mother's Day.   And more than this shouldn't we let go of any bad feelings we may have about our mothers?

       Even if we think we've had the worst parents in the world, we might be looking at them with an obscured vision. Perhaps we need to try to look at them through God's eyes.   Most of us have had parents who nurtured us to some extent at least and saw us into our adult lives.  Especially those of us who made it to adult life and still have one or both parents still living, maybe we need to step into our own adult shoes and view our parents from a grown up perspective.

         I'm sure it's difficult for some of you.   I was lucky.  I had parents who obviously cared deeply for me, but they made their mistakes as well.  Would I gain anything dwelling on those mistakes?   We all have bad things that happen to us in life no matter how good our parents have been to us.    The point I'm trying to stress is to avoid dwelling on the bad things and enjoy the happy parts of the past.   And even more importantly, find the happiness in the present and strive toward the best future you can possibly make.

          We cannot change the past and the present is the time to stop holding people accountable for past mistakes.   Hopefully if apologies are due they will be offered and forgiveness can come in return.   Don't harp on things you can't do anything about and avoid bitterness and hatred.  

           What do you want to add to the world--positivity or negativity?   When people get older, their habits and attitudes become more ingrained.   People can be difficult to change and the more you fight them, the more entrenched they become in what they believe.  

         If you are dealing with an older parent, love them as best you can.  Sure, they might be an inconvenience to your life at times and they might even stir your negative emotions.   Remember that one day you too might reach their age.  What will you be afraid of?    What will you worry about?   What pains or difficulties will you have to deal with?   Put yourself in your parents' shoes.   How will you want to be treated when your day comes?

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.   “Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise—  “so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”

Ephesians 6:1-3

New International Version (NIV)

Related articles

• May 2014 Issue
• Happy Mother's Day, Mom
• If Mother's Day hurts
• Honoring Our Mothers, Warts & All: A History of Mother's Day
• Tell Your Parents You Love Them

A to Z Reflections 2014 #atozchallenge

Declare his glory among the nations,
    his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

Psalm 96:3

New International Version (NIV)

The April Challenge Stats

         Though I consider my main blog to be Tossing It Out, this blog you are visiting now is the one I consider to be the one with the most important mission.   This blog is also the least visited of all my blogs.  During the A to Z Challenge my most visits came on day one with 35 views and 5 comments.  During most of April my views averaged at about 10 per post as opposed to my normal count of about 30 views on an average post.   My comments during most of April averaged at about 3 per post which is fairly comparable to the comments my posts here typically receive.

          To put the lower April pageview count into perspective, I was posting here seven days per week as opposed to only on Sundays as I do during most of the year.   That taken into consideration, my weekly visits and comments were considerably higher over all per week.  Still the counts here are very small.  I rarely promote this blog other than a few Twitter notices each Sunday.  That might account for increased page views during those periods.   I tweeted links to posts at A Few Words rarely during the April Challenge.

          Naturally I'm disappointed that I didn't receive more visits and comments, but I'm accustomed to this at this blog.    I am pleased to have participated and if I didn't reach many people with my messages, the personal edification that I receive researching the posts makes doing A to Z on this blog worthwhile.  If I reach only one person who will pursue the message further then my mission has been accomplished.

My Message During April

        My mission statement of my thematic intent for April was as follows:

         My theme for the 2014 Challenge will be From the Beginnings... Yes, the plural "Beginnings" is not an error. In history as in our own lives we see multiple eras or phases that entail new beginnings. The old passes and the new is born. Hopefully with new birth there is a change for the better or a lesson to be learned. If you are interested in learning more about a life change for the better, visit the above tab labeled "Take the Next Step"

         My hope was to stimulate thought in the believers who read my posts, but even more to pique some interest in any non-believers who might happen upon my site.   My typical approach on all of my posts at this blog is to open with a Bible passage from the Old Testament--usually one from Psalms, offer my thoughts on a particular topic related to that passage, and then close with a New Testament passage that is related to the subject.  This was what I did during the April Challenge.

A Request to You

         During April I only added about six new followers to this blog.  If you are not yet following and would be willing to add this blog to the list of those you do follow, please click on the "Join This Site" button at the right in the sidebar.  Then I would hope you might continue to stop by for my usual Sunday messages and leave a comment with your encouragement, questions, or observations.   It's always nice to see one's efforts rewarded with a few readers.   I hope that you might become one of those readers.

         Please share this site with those who might be interested or receptive to what I have to say here.  I am not a clergy person or anyone with a scholarly background in theology.  I am just a student of the teachings of the Bible and offer my interpretations as I see them.  I may be wrong sometimes and I welcome discussion on those points when readers see flaws in what I am saying.  My intent always is to say the truth as I understand the truth.

           I hope to see you come back to read and share in the future.   I thank you for taking the time now to read this post.

           May God's blessings be upon you and may you continue to grow in your understanding of what is true.
          

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.

Romans 15:4

New International Version (NIV)