I was fortunate to spend some alone time with my parents for a couple of days before our most recent family reunion started. Even though my Dad is hard of hearing, and is difficult to communicate with, at 89 years of age, he is still teaching me about life.
While driving together, he told me about the financial decisions that he had recently made and how thru his acumen, he has been able to also sell and buy a few vehicles for a profit. One car he sold because he was sideswiped by a semi-truck. In the middle of the conversation, he said, "God is really good to us. We could have been killed by that truck. If I had been a second slower we might not be here. Also, by being sensitive to God's leading in the selling and buying of the vehicles, everyone got a fair deal."
The next morning, we were trimming the pecan tree that was in the back. He had been waiting for me to visit so that he could get this job done. The tree had overgrown the house and was hanging into the neighbor's yard. We worked steadily for a couple of hours, hardly talking to each other. Yet, there is something about a father and a son working together that builds upon intimacy. We paused a couple of times to sit down and drink some water together (it was in 90 degree sunny weather). We didn't talk about much, mostly the tree and how the squirrels steal the pecans and how he got a new BB gun so that he could scare them away.
The third thing he taught me was that his love for God is still alive and vibrant after all these years. I love to hear my Dad pray. He doesn't use a lot of flowery words or Elizabethan English. He usually doesn't pray very long (however, I have been privy to some of the times when I heard him and my Mom pray for extended periods of time). Yet, almost every prayer recognizes God's authority, our dependence on Him and a sincere thankfulness for God's provision.
So, you may be reading this and think, "wow, I haven't told my Dad recently about how much I appreciate his influence in my life."
If that is you, let him know.
Or you may be thinking, "I wish my Dad was like that."
If that is you, rise to the challenge and be that kind of Dad for your kids.
If you don't have kids, find a single mother of a young boy in your church and invest your life into his spiritual, emotional, physical growth.
BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.
While driving together, he told me about the financial decisions that he had recently made and how thru his acumen, he has been able to also sell and buy a few vehicles for a profit. One car he sold because he was sideswiped by a semi-truck. In the middle of the conversation, he said, "God is really good to us. We could have been killed by that truck. If I had been a second slower we might not be here. Also, by being sensitive to God's leading in the selling and buying of the vehicles, everyone got a fair deal."
The next morning, we were trimming the pecan tree that was in the back. He had been waiting for me to visit so that he could get this job done. The tree had overgrown the house and was hanging into the neighbor's yard. We worked steadily for a couple of hours, hardly talking to each other. Yet, there is something about a father and a son working together that builds upon intimacy. We paused a couple of times to sit down and drink some water together (it was in 90 degree sunny weather). We didn't talk about much, mostly the tree and how the squirrels steal the pecans and how he got a new BB gun so that he could scare them away.
The third thing he taught me was that his love for God is still alive and vibrant after all these years. I love to hear my Dad pray. He doesn't use a lot of flowery words or Elizabethan English. He usually doesn't pray very long (however, I have been privy to some of the times when I heard him and my Mom pray for extended periods of time). Yet, almost every prayer recognizes God's authority, our dependence on Him and a sincere thankfulness for God's provision.
So, you may be reading this and think, "wow, I haven't told my Dad recently about how much I appreciate his influence in my life."
If that is you, let him know.
Or you may be thinking, "I wish my Dad was like that."
If that is you, rise to the challenge and be that kind of Dad for your kids.
If you don't have kids, find a single mother of a young boy in your church and invest your life into his spiritual, emotional, physical growth.
BE HOLY.
BE A MAN.
