The Sermon What Makes A Good Dad? by David McGee
Jun 15, 2014
What Makes A Good Dad? (35:44)
Referenced Scriptures: Ephesians 6:4; Matthew 22:36-37; 1 Corinthians 13:4-7; Luke 11:11-13
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The scriptures below are from the WEB Bible.
Ephesians 6:4
4) You fathers, don‘t provoke your children to wrath, but nurture them in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Matthew 22:36-37
36) "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?"
37) Jesus said to him, "‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.‘
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
4) Love is patient and is kind; love doesn‘t envy. Love doesn‘t brag, is not proud,
5) doesn‘t behave itself inappropriately, doesn‘t seek its own way, is not provoked, takes no account of evil;
6) doesn‘t rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;
7) bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Luke 11:11-13
11) Which of you fathers, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he won‘t give him a snake instead of a fish, will he?
12) Or if he asks for an egg, he won‘t give him a scorpion, will he?
13) If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?"
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As Father's Day and were grateful for all of our men and the young men and argue today we have gifts for most everyone on most demeaning and that the. There are either pliers or scissors her flashlight and or little teaching so those are the things that we have today. But what makes a good debt, M what makes a good dad okay all you dads raise your hand. That's it. We know that Jesse later that don't mess with perfect. You know, but other status reading is an active, aggressive Father's Day. Millions of people, young and old will take time to express their appreciation for good old dad. I don't like that. Good old dad would say, good old mom. He imagined that we're lovers, J Loblaw, only women would appreciate good old mom. Without a moral good old ads like way again. I'm your height. I don't know. I don't think those words go together good old dad. Maybe someday they will maybe twenty or thirty years now, but not now developed that so what does it if other looked like will be a little skit that we want to throw up on the screen here. What makes a good dad. So here we go will will will will will is as you see in a is a him and so that about ten times and I'll be done so. But whenever we think about it then and the importance of it. I remember growing up and my dad and grandfather, and was a very churchgoing family. We went to church at least three times a week and I was saying this morning that since nineteen seventy two on nineteen seventy two. We started as an home missions church in northern Maine. So we did. We just had a group of children in the afternoon as kind of foundation for the church and we're trying to establish their but probably since nineteen seventy four. I've never had church Sunday school is the first time since nineteen seventy four, so that the least ten years and and death. It's a cultural change. You are getting ready in preparing and not having Sunday's most like. It's like there's something missing. But again, it's just for the summer, so every week, ten a.m. what time the search start at guard. A copy bopper remind them know it's always it's always good to give them a call and I'm just reminding you tomorrow at the ten and that's an invitation as well as a reminder, so you write it in Ephesians chapter six verse one is a number of Scriptures in Ellery today, but all fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by way you treat by the way you treat them rather bring them up with the discipline and instructions. It comes from the Lord. That's the new living translation in the message Bible says, though God has given you power you must not abuse that power. Remembering that your children are in a particular manner pieces of your self and therefore ought to be governed with great tenderness and love being occupation within when you caution there when you counsel them when you reprove them doing such a manner not to provoke them to run a sometimes I think for our children that we are frustrated with ourselves younger, fresher, sometimes with how we do things that should've invested in that and we enough. Sometimes they get out of our kids not that I ever did that but sometimes week we take these examples that we find in the Scriptures will ourselves to be able to know the businesses here. Fathers don't promote or don't exasperate your children exasperate. I'd look that one up exasperated to make someone very angry or annoyed now I say I know that there are times in which job children can be annoying but the will, not to provoke them to be that way so to the excited to range, so there is a way in which this is where and and on the message would talk about this, that this is where we find ourselves. Learning how to become a father learning how to become a good Christian letter, learning how to follow Jesus Christ and the examples that he is set for us and no one is born perfect boy was born perfectly. Jesus bought in it and that we find in the Scriptures that Jesus was always like using his ministry became even greater than what it started out as the cause of the suffering and the trials and tribulations, and how many handle those things, and even the death of the cross. But all these were part of how the Jesus Grove and as aware and as being a person, even though he started out as he was perfect, but yet there was this continual growth in his life and growth. It was that was noticed and nurtured. He nurtured the disciples with it some find ourselves that we learn by example. More importantly than having someone do the work for us. We work with them so we learn by example. We learned by following by ill following in your father 's footsteps having a mentor having someone is able to train us and teach us, frustration, I think is more with self than for print frustration with the mature how many times ought to tell you this. If a hasty visit Rachel was young once and off. She was my special file this year 's official being that makes rational leftists like the person who was very strong willed. She still is now. She's very strong-willed Mary determine there is a good word. She was very determined and what she didn't know how she did things weather was yelling cheering her guilt in an educating and being in getting her degrees, things like that. She was very determined to know. She knew what she was going to be in third grade. I think second rate in second grade she knew what she is movie was with her life. She was going to be a special needs teacher. She know what she said it over and over again, and I never forget there was a teacher who is now deceased. So there was a teacher that told her that she needed. She would never become she needed to change her idea, because she would never become a teacher and I didn't know that at the time, or I wouldn't spoken with that individual. Yet she wasn't college material and she was a teacher material while the idea was that it times of discipline. I think Rachel, I did write you guys special right now. Yes, come here when shaving skincare ritual computer. Now look at me now. It was look at me, okay what did I say what did I say and she would come off with this. I think what you and I just here when I told this to you if you weren't you listening when I told you this repeat this after me. I thought& I said no repeated. I want. I don't know right right now. One is a nice act so that when we were finished I at least knew that she knew what I said because sometimes an end. Most the time I think that frustrations and problems arrive in our lives because of misunderstandings misinterpretations that week. That's why I don't think texting is the best thing to do because you're going to read the text in the framework of the mind that you read it, not in the framework of the mind of the person, the Senate that you are going to read what you read from your perspective, not the perspective of the person that put it there. And so we're going to misinterpret more than we interpret correctly, specially when they're on that fence of knowledge were in all of anger, frustration, fear, no bad feelings good feeling zero net middle part often were going to fall off the edge in a negative sense. So we want to look at things were not provoking not frustrated. That's hard. We don't want to be frustrated when are going to be exasperating ourselves that we are not going to be looking at ourselves from an angry, annoyed physician so frustrated yourself is more of a frustration frustration with self was more of the problem than with the child. Children need. Children tend to see themselves responsible for the problems. Sometimes children operate on a guilt vote up modality. I will think it's something that we intended it to be, but children often see the also someone who is responsible for the problems that are now and we do that without if you just behave. I would have to do this to you now it hurts me more than it hurts you. Now let me go to use the new girl. You never know what the latest looks so you see that we have a saying sub anger and frustration in and you know, because it's hard for us to respond in a loving, caring way to discipline and a loving, caring way. When there's not frustration, fear, anger, and you know about you and is willing to drop it off this list type of I'm not going there. I have to okay when I'm not angry. Then I will you ever did that one though. When my mom, my dad. My dad went younger group of firemen, but I didn't have a lot of time he worked two jobs to full-time jobs worked in the minds in the form in on enough you ever thought about farming that you got them out. The girls, they are thirty to thirty five, had a cattle while that's nothing thousand. He had another thirty fifty, so we had anywhere from fifty seventy five. Any travel whole time I was growing up, and set when I got older, we leapt over a hundred. So here's my dad working two full-time jobs farming two hundred acres of grounds and worked forty hours in the minds coming home and working at the farm and doing all that, and there was a very tight schedule because the change shifts that he would work well in mornings your work day shift afternoon shift, and Rudolph and we work through all all night. He was up early in the morning and everyone went to bed and work all day on the phone I was off data. Worked all day is when every work night shift so when you have all those things in place. I think he had never got upset with me was just my brother, but the EFF so much images A things, but we look at and Miguel, sometimes without all this pressure pressure on ourselves and my dad wasn't just the worker. He was the boss saw yet all this pressure of the minds and selling, and then I'm tonight and I don't realize this until now when I'm only older, but my dad 's brother and my mother 's brother were both killed in the same mine explosion, so you have all of that anxiety of going to work, working in the minds going doing all these things, and with the anxiety that you know the things really go bad. You're the one responsible up as you're the boss and your undefined if the farm fails, it's your responsibility as you won't insult when you have kids. They need to get their chores done. Now my mother 's solution to sickness was take two aspirin and go the barn. Cure-all for everything. Thank you( go the barn and if you're still sick. We commingled bit so we go up in that environment, but we find now that everyone does it differently. I mean, we all do it differently. While which way is perfect. Which one fits pink perfection does not mean without flaw. Its fulfillment so that we find ourselves being fulfilled. What is our role. What is the role that we live in his parents, and where do we live in our background and our education don't the challenge is we have to have permission to fail because no one is perfect and whenever we think they were bluntly perfect were just setting ourselves up for failure. So in first grade inserting longest patient waiting with great stress that enough her father 's longest kinds of stress that when love is not your heart had a person in our industry story people that would talk you say what you know, we really don't believe all the Bible. Okay, we'll get yourself a marker and scratch out everything you don't believe what you know when you are different places in your life, you guys scratch on a lot of things because it's telling you to be longest patient, kind, will not allow the patient of the belonged to today and start scratching it out, love is not jealous or boastful, proud or rude does not demand its own way is not irritable movements can say that again. Love is not the madness does not demand its own way is not irritable. It is not irritable. A considerably high love is not irritable. I'm not irritated today. Very calm and there you see how that we look at what God is doing a look at our life and how the things are moving in we. We are trying to take the context of the Scripture and make application of those Scriptures to our life, but we don't do it in a way that is going to that. We're going try and do it on our own. We are going to do it in a way that it's me against the world. Now it's God, and I together in this pattern of change. So, patience and kindness and doors are challenging to embody us but it's something that we need to look at how the God is going to help us become this. I visited the we went away this week we went down to Philadelphia, and we had to foster brothers. I have to foster brothers that they lived with my. My parents were with us for about twelve years other like like brothers. I remember when one of them wrecked the car and driving home at night without visiting his girlfriend. my mother had the role that you can stay up all night, you can get up in the morning never made sense to me in when you're sixteen, seventeen years old at home by midnight, the Idaho one o'clock in the morning, you still have enough five thirty one dozen. Q moment two o'clock the morning chores are five thirty so if you can stay up all night, you can get up in the morning makes no sense, but I have my brother, my foster brother is driving home just about a mile from the house falls asleep Gaza, ditch rights, the car my dad. The problem is not that kind me at FF, but it was just not my head. And that way he won't Dan and Bill are the brothers and they consider my mom and dad there. Mom and dad because their family is so not like them were family and we, my older brother just, I was constantly was very much in contact with the Danville and family and no just part of family and I was thinking of Rhonda hurt her cousin 's no nephew that was coming August, twelve, thirteen only was asking his mother. Why do you call grandma Jenny and he said, while the base of because she's really not my mother. She's my stepmother. He never knew that these twelve fourteen years old, is a brilliant man. L these head of some major corporation and not California. And but he never knew that his grandmother really wasn't his grandmother and I was thinking of John and Mary Mangus, they have a number of girls. I don't member how many affidavit, they adopted a girl from a foreign country. I do remember which ones I won't say. And so they adopted this this young girl she was. I think she was just an infant or two, three years old when they adopted her and when she was twenty, twenty one, she was went to the doctor 's office and she was filling out family history, so she's writing up all the things about John and Mary in underwriting my mom. This memo has that she's right. No payment used by the patient remembers I was adopted, is a classic type of relationship that we are looking for, and this is the type of relationship that God has with us. God has his relationship with us that he doesn't see us all. David is a center David Hale, David is on this rendezvous that he doesn't look at that. He doesn't bring that up and say you remember when that doesn't do that he forgives pushes and pushes that aside brings up the good in our lives. The possibilities and potentials. He brings up to that which is up, but which we are able to develop the focus is on our strengths. He focuses on our calling. He focus on the things that are about giving us life and fulfillment, fulfillment, not perfection. Perfection will drive you crazy I'll let that sink in for a minute perfection will drive you crazy because nothing is ever perfect, but the challenge for us, then, is to allow God to work through last and greatest example of the reason is so important for us to know God and God 's character is that we can be reflective in God 's character and how we live, how we interact, how we love all the we forgive how they were able to how they were able to discipline how they were able to help you see, these are the characteristics of God. And when God is in our heart and we love God, and then we are just reflecting our father who art in heaven, your holy and that I want to reflect your holiness in my life. By forgiving, loving the Psalm sixty eight five, says while in dilute Susan do one more here. Luke chapter eleven verse eleven through thirteen. Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead. 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 if it is in our hearts think that is in our hearts and know that if our child asked for a fish something to eat, are hardly safe, unavailable to snake in their life because your heart says this is not right. That's just not right. How do we know because of the relationship that God has with us is just not right called would never do that to us. Else you hear people in. I don't know where they get their image of God. From what you hear people say while you know God must enjoy hurting people does look how he did this look. Kali did that look obviously wrong and how that will go into what we have our own human genetic weaknesses. We have our own inherited failures learned behaviors, misconceptions, we have world so what God is telling us in showing us that this is what perfect is what we can't be perfect, but were trying, and were striving oh I was going to use it off sometimes we we think that in our society. What does a supplies a society who put out there as a father of you have been. I get that up you get that up with that intaglio of Homer and The Simpsons. That's okay. I wonder we have on television will have a television L Monday it out and out by the father appeared and watching TV remote and doesn't really interact the care about his family or kids. Now that is an old father and old man, and I have the day and age of act and some of the models and not only is he in fact he has no desire to change. He has no desire to be him what he has and is going to the cats. So there is this kind of this image now fathers were the fathers were bungling lazy obviously indifferent to the needs of the family and normalizes the meteoric mediocrity of fatherhood and we see this on its own a television mediocrity and it's important that that we look at how God is at work in our life, because God isn't bringing mediocrity. He is bringing to us the ability to take the best of what we are in the best of who we are and make it better. God is looking to bring the best of who we are living the abilities that we possess. It's not genetic, that we become good fathers. It's a learned behavior, because we learn by the example of our heavenly father. So, and one of things is no bring this to a close when we hear the WordPerfect. It would be the perfect person flawless. We may have perfect diamonds we may have a perfect performance flawless, but the use for the WordPerfect in the passage in the Hebrew and Greek carries the meaning of making something complete or whole that God completes us. We are confused nothing out. We are a few up or slowed for your brick shy of a load. Now, we are now my elevator only saw crawlspaces are not immediately don't have all these things together but God completes us. He remembered bring God into that into the fold into the who we are in our relationship. It's God didn't do helps us to become to complete us, and the challenge is not that we need to find fault, but that we need to find the good that we're doing and make it and allow God to help us make it better. You know, I was blessed by having a good father and I was blessed by having a great grandfather. Now I've I was privileged, but there are there some people who don't have that privilege. And so we look at it, though, is our father. God is our father and no matter what our experience in life. God is our father, who brings us to where we are to where he wants us to be. We are in the process of becoming so. However, the truth, however the truth is that God the guy can read the truth is that the fathers are not born, but may, as they are forged and refined through difficult circumstances where May where refined as we go through the process of difficulties you see, I like this little quote we had a innumerable moments of epic parent stupidity. But when you have more normally have more moments than we can count on epic stupidity. Okay, when you have enough of those, but it is okay that we are not perfect because God the only one who's flawless in his the one who walks with us in our heart knows, I shouldn't done that. Forgive me, forgive me to whomever we hurt God will help us to do the right thing. God will help us to grow our ministry to our children ministry. I minister to our children is made more complete with each season and with each experience. It's the experiences that help us, so that whenever we become old and grandfathers. We give the kids back. The body and the goal is that our children can grow into whatever the role God calls them to be. That's when we have succeeded, not in whether they walk the straight line and do exactly as told, I was disliked that we do walk the straight line digital and then when you reach a certain age of eighteen are twenty two: whatever that is what you do get out of line and those succeeds, you will be a success when you told us an line will not do that anymore. Cannot we consult the call is yes, we have rules and we have a line and brought into the Bible says the straightest path and narrows the way the lease of eternal life stride is a path narrows the way doesn't mean were stuck on the side of a hill walking along a cliff and that were without back to the clip in the files of foot drop in front of us were just trying to keep ourselves from falling off and that's that's the narrow way to heaven. Not it at all. Your drive down the road as guardrails. The wall the side of stoners guardrails on the side straightest path, meaning that there are guidelines to our lives, guidelines don't feel down still don't bear false witness the live dog cheat yourself out of life and you you have this for laying a lane road of God 's provision going in the right direction. He keeps us safe within the guidelines of these rules and of his laws so that we can become the person that God wants us to be stuck on the edge being afraid of falling into hell and hoping that God wants to help us into heaven. We have a great big path of life, and that's what God is teaching us as individuals and what we are providing for children. Thank you, but soft and perfect timing chips are perfect you have all the men, guys. The boys, kids( Anna Tammy Rundle did kids bring them up, daddy, thank you very, very savvy tabby, Gary, come on down three and is not a shovel. I hope yes, the significance is anything ever had him say this so grateful sticking to it. Sticking with it graduating the men, boys, kids have a customized as you like to thought would get with it. I would've their name and so come on down, boys, so I I cut about the flashlights for the little ones, the less you can teach to your little one look at the tool you want than they have to get it for you, but the got flashlights and some keychains and scissors of different sizes and shapes, and even scissors that make patterns and of course these are sung. They get to pick whichever one you want. This was not as men are on. We never grow up to start toys get more expensive. So we're grateful for that work rifle for all of the men and guys, guys, guys were grateful for all of you and your blessings in your leadership and your work that you do here to church your support. We are blessed. Amen. What is let's have our men and father. We are grateful to you that you are our father, you give us the divine example. Lord we pray that by your spirit that we become we grow Lord that we grow on from here. It would become the person that you want us to be. We ask your blessing upon each of us your wisdom and your understanding God. Your love, your inner guidance in all that we say and do we need you more than ever, we pray in Jesus name amenAs Father's Day and were grateful for all of our men and the young men and argue today we have gifts for most everyone on most demeaning and that the. There are either pliers or scissors her flashlight and or little teaching so those are the things that we have today. But what makes a good debt, M what makes a good dad okay all you dads raise your hand. That's it. We know that Jesse later that don't mess with perfect. You know, but other status reading is an active, aggressive Father's Day. Millions of people, young and old will take time to express their appreciation for good old dad. I don't like that. Good old dad would say, good old mom. He imagined that we're lovers, J Loblaw, only women would appreciate good old mom. Without a moral good old ads like way again. I'm your height. I don't know. I don't think those words go together good old dad. Maybe someday they will maybe twenty or thirty years now, but not now developed that so what does it if other looked like will be a little skit that we want to throw up on the screen here. What makes a good dad. So here we go will will will will will is as you see in a is a him and so that about ten times and I'll be done so. But whenever we think about it then and the importance of it. I remember growing up and my dad and grandfather, and was a very churchgoing family. We went to church at least three times a week and I was saying this morning that since nineteen seventy two on nineteen seventy two. We started as an home missions church in northern Maine. So we did. We just had a group of children in the afternoon as kind of foundation for the church and we're trying to establish their but probably since nineteen seventy four. I've never had church Sunday school is the first time since nineteen seventy four, so that the least ten years and and death. It's a cultural change. You are getting ready in preparing and not having Sunday's most like. It's like there's something missing. But again, it's just for the summer, so every week, ten a.m. what time the search start at guard. A copy bopper remind them know it's always it's always good to give them a call and I'm just reminding you tomorrow at the ten and that's an invitation as well as a reminder, so you write it in Ephesians chapter six verse one is a number of Scriptures in Ellery today, but all fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by way you treat by the way you treat them rather bring them up with the discipline and instructions. It comes from the Lord. That's the new living translation in the message Bible says, though God has given you power you must not abuse that power. Remembering that your children are in a particular manner pieces of your self and therefore ought to be governed with great tenderness and love being occupation within when you caution there when you counsel them when you reprove them doing such a manner not to provoke them to run a sometimes I think for our children that we are frustrated with ourselves younger, fresher, sometimes with how we do things that should've invested in that and we enough. Sometimes they get out of our kids not that I ever did that but sometimes week we take these examples that we find in the Scriptures will ourselves to be able to know the businesses here. Fathers don't promote or don't exasperate your children exasperate. I'd look that one up exasperated to make someone very angry or annoyed now I say I know that there are times in which job children can be annoying but the will, not to provoke them to be that way so to the excited to range, so there is a way in which this is where and and on the message would talk about this, that this is where we find ourselves. Learning how to become a father learning how to become a good Christian letter, learning how to follow Jesus Christ and the examples that he is set for us and no one is born perfect boy was born perfectly. Jesus bought in it and that we find in the Scriptures that Jesus was always like using his ministry became even greater than what it started out as the cause of the suffering and the trials and tribulations, and how many handle those things, and even the death of the cross. But all these were part of how the Jesus Grove and as aware and as being a person, even though he started out as he was perfect, but yet there was this continual growth in his life and growth. It was that was noticed and nurtured. He nurtured the disciples with it some find ourselves that we learn by example. More importantly than having someone do the work for us. We work with them so we learn by example. We learned by following by ill following in your father 's footsteps having a mentor having someone is able to train us and teach us, frustration, I think is more with self than for print frustration with the mature how many times ought to tell you this. If a hasty visit Rachel was young once and off. She was my special file this year 's official being that makes rational leftists like the person who was very strong willed. She still is now. She's very strong-willed Mary determine there is a good word. She was very determined and what she didn't know how she did things weather was yelling cheering her guilt in an educating and being in getting her degrees, things like that. She was very determined to know. She knew what she was going to be in third grade. I think second rate in second grade she knew what she is movie was with her life. She was going to be a special needs teacher. She know what she said it over and over again, and I never forget there was a teacher who is now deceased. So there was a teacher that told her that she needed. She would never become she needed to change her idea, because she would never become a teacher and I didn't know that at the time, or I wouldn't spoken with that individual. Yet she wasn't college material and she was a teacher material while the idea was that it times of discipline. I think Rachel, I did write you guys special right now. Yes, come here when shaving skincare ritual computer. Now look at me now. It was look at me, okay what did I say what did I say and she would come off with this. I think what you and I just here when I told this to you if you weren't you listening when I told you this repeat this after me. I thought& I said no repeated. I want. I don't know right right now. One is a nice act so that when we were finished I at least knew that she knew what I said because sometimes an end. Most the time I think that frustrations and problems arrive in our lives because of misunderstandings misinterpretations that week. That's why I don't think texting is the best thing to do because you're going to read the text in the framework of the mind that you read it, not in the framework of the mind of the person, the Senate that you are going to read what you read from your perspective, not the perspective of the person that put it there. And so we're going to misinterpret more than we interpret correctly, specially when they're on that fence of knowledge were in all of anger, frustration, fear, no bad feelings good feeling zero net middle part often were going to fall off the edge in a negative sense. So we want to look at things were not provoking not frustrated. That's hard. We don't want to be frustrated when are going to be exasperating ourselves that we are not going to be looking at ourselves from an angry, annoyed physician so frustrated yourself is more of a frustration frustration with self was more of the problem than with the child. Children need. Children tend to see themselves responsible for the problems. Sometimes children operate on a guilt vote up modality. I will think it's something that we intended it to be, but children often see the also someone who is responsible for the problems that are now and we do that without if you just behave. I would have to do this to you now it hurts me more than it hurts you. Now let me go to use the new girl. You never know what the latest looks so you see that we have a saying sub anger and frustration in and you know, because it's hard for us to respond in a loving, caring way to discipline and a loving, caring way. When there's not frustration, fear, anger, and you know about you and is willing to drop it off this list type of I'm not going there. I have to okay when I'm not angry. Then I will you ever did that one though. When my mom, my dad. My dad went younger group of firemen, but I didn't have a lot of time he worked two jobs to full-time jobs worked in the minds in the form in on enough you ever thought about farming that you got them out. The girls, they are thirty to thirty five, had a cattle while that's nothing thousand. He had another thirty fifty, so we had anywhere from fifty seventy five. Any travel whole time I was growing up, and set when I got older, we leapt over a hundred. So here's my dad working two full-time jobs farming two hundred acres of grounds and worked forty hours in the minds coming home and working at the farm and doing all that, and there was a very tight schedule because the change shifts that he would work well in mornings your work day shift afternoon shift, and Rudolph and we work through all all night. He was up early in the morning and everyone went to bed and work all day on the phone I was off data. Worked all day is when every work night shift so when you have all those things in place. I think he had never got upset with me was just my brother, but the EFF so much images A things, but we look at and Miguel, sometimes without all this pressure pressure on ourselves and my dad wasn't just the worker. He was the boss saw yet all this pressure of the minds and selling, and then I'm tonight and I don't realize this until now when I'm only older, but my dad 's brother and my mother 's brother were both killed in the same mine explosion, so you have all of that anxiety of going to work, working in the minds going doing all these things, and with the anxiety that you know the things really go bad. You're the one responsible up as you're the boss and your undefined if the farm fails, it's your responsibility as you won't insult when you have kids. They need to get their chores done. Now my mother 's solution to sickness was take two aspirin and go the barn. Cure-all for everything. Thank you( go the barn and if you're still sick. We commingled bit so we go up in that environment, but we find now that everyone does it differently. I mean, we all do it differently. While which way is perfect. Which one fits pink perfection does not mean without flaw. Its fulfillment so that we find ourselves being fulfilled. What is our role. What is the role that we live in his parents, and where do we live in our background and our education don't the challenge is we have to have permission to fail because no one is perfect and whenever we think they were bluntly perfect were just setting ourselves up for failure. So in first grade inserting longest patient waiting with great stress that enough her father 's longest kinds of stress that when love is not your heart had a person in our industry story people that would talk you say what you know, we really don't believe all the Bible. Okay, we'll get yourself a marker and scratch out everything you don't believe what you know when you are different places in your life, you guys scratch on a lot of things because it's telling you to be longest patient, kind, will not allow the patient of the belonged to today and start scratching it out, love is not jealous or boastful, proud or rude does not demand its own way is not irritable movements can say that again. Love is not the madness does not demand its own way is not irritable. It is not irritable. A considerably high love is not irritable. I'm not irritated today. Very calm and there you see how that we look at what God is doing a look at our life and how the things are moving in we. We are trying to take the context of the Scripture and make application of those Scriptures to our life, but we don't do it in a way that is going to that. We're going try and do it on our own. We are going to do it in a way that it's me against the world. Now it's God, and I together in this pattern of change. So, patience and kindness and doors are challenging to embody us but it's something that we need to look at how the God is going to help us become this. I visited the we went away this week we went down to Philadelphia, and we had to foster brothers. I have to foster brothers that they lived with my. My parents were with us for about twelve years other like like brothers. I remember when one of them wrecked the car and driving home at night without visiting his girlfriend. my mother had the role that you can stay up all night, you can get up in the morning never made sense to me in when you're sixteen, seventeen years old at home by midnight, the Idaho one o'clock in the morning, you still have enough five thirty one dozen. Q moment two o'clock the morning chores are five thirty so if you can stay up all night, you can get up in the morning makes no sense, but I have my brother, my foster brother is driving home just about a mile from the house falls asleep Gaza, ditch rights, the car my dad. The problem is not that kind me at FF, but it was just not my head. And that way he won't Dan and Bill are the brothers and they consider my mom and dad there. Mom and dad because their family is so not like them were family and we, my older brother just, I was constantly was very much in contact with the Danville and family and no just part of family and I was thinking of Rhonda hurt her cousin 's no nephew that was coming August, twelve, thirteen only was asking his mother. Why do you call grandma Jenny and he said, while the base of because she's really not my mother. She's my stepmother. He never knew that these twelve fourteen years old, is a brilliant man. L these head of some major corporation and not California. And but he never knew that his grandmother really wasn't his grandmother and I was thinking of John and Mary Mangus, they have a number of girls. I don't member how many affidavit, they adopted a girl from a foreign country. I do remember which ones I won't say. And so they adopted this this young girl she was. I think she was just an infant or two, three years old when they adopted her and when she was twenty, twenty one, she was went to the doctor 's office and she was filling out family history, so she's writing up all the things about John and Mary in underwriting my mom. This memo has that she's right. No payment used by the patient remembers I was adopted, is a classic type of relationship that we are looking for, and this is the type of relationship that God has with us. God has his relationship with us that he doesn't see us all. David is a center David Hale, David is on this rendezvous that he doesn't look at that. He doesn't bring that up and say you remember when that doesn't do that he forgives pushes and pushes that aside brings up the good in our lives. The possibilities and potentials. He brings up to that which is up, but which we are able to develop the focus is on our strengths. He focuses on our calling. He focus on the things that are about giving us life and fulfillment, fulfillment, not perfection. Perfection will drive you crazy I'll let that sink in for a minute perfection will drive you crazy because nothing is ever perfect, but the challenge for us, then, is to allow God to work through last and greatest example of the reason is so important for us to know God and God 's character is that we can be reflective in God 's character and how we live, how we interact, how we love all the we forgive how they were able to how they were able to discipline how they were able to help you see, these are the characteristics of God. And when God is in our heart and we love God, and then we are just reflecting our father who art in heaven, your holy and that I want to reflect your holiness in my life. By forgiving, loving the Psalm sixty eight five, says while in dilute Susan do one more here. Luke chapter eleven verse eleven through thirteen. Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead. 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 if it is in our hearts think that is in our hearts and know that if our child asked for a fish something to eat, are hardly safe, unavailable to snake in their life because your heart says this is not right. That's just not right. How do we know because of the relationship that God has with us is just not right called would never do that to us. Else you hear people in. I don't know where they get their image of God. From what you hear people say while you know God must enjoy hurting people does look how he did this look. Kali did that look obviously wrong and how that will go into what we have our own human genetic weaknesses. We have our own inherited failures learned behaviors, misconceptions, we have world so what God is telling us in showing us that this is what perfect is what we can't be perfect, but were trying, and were striving oh I was going to use it off sometimes we we think that in our society. What does a supplies a society who put out there as a father of you have been. I get that up you get that up with that intaglio of Homer and The Simpsons. That's okay. I wonder we have on television will have a television L Monday it out and out by the father appeared and watching TV remote and doesn't really interact the care about his family or kids. Now that is an old father and old man, and I have the day and age of act and some of the models and not only is he in fact he has no desire to change. He has no desire to be him what he has and is going to the cats. So there is this kind of this image now fathers were the fathers were bungling lazy obviously indifferent to the needs of the family and normalizes the meteoric mediocrity of fatherhood and we see this on its own a television mediocrity and it's important that that we look at how God is at work in our life, because God isn't bringing mediocrity. He is bringing to us the ability to take the best of what we are in the best of who we are and make it better. God is looking to bring the best of who we are living the abilities that we possess. It's not genetic, that we become good fathers. It's a learned behavior, because we learn by the example of our heavenly father. So, and one of things is no bring this to a close when we hear the WordPerfect. It would be the perfect person flawless. We may have perfect diamonds we may have a perfect performance flawless, but the use for the WordPerfect in the passage in the Hebrew and Greek carries the meaning of making something complete or whole that God completes us. We are confused nothing out. We are a few up or slowed for your brick shy of a load. Now, we are now my elevator only saw crawlspaces are not immediately don't have all these things together but God completes us. He remembered bring God into that into the fold into the who we are in our relationship. It's God didn't do helps us to become to complete us, and the challenge is not that we need to find fault, but that we need to find the good that we're doing and make it and allow God to help us make it better. You know, I was blessed by having a good father and I was blessed by having a great grandfather. Now I've I was privileged, but there are there some people who don't have that privilege. And so we look at it, though, is our father. God is our father and no matter what our experience in life. God is our father, who brings us to where we are to where he wants us to be. We are in the process of becoming so. However, the truth, however the truth is that God the guy can read the truth is that the fathers are not born, but may, as they are forged and refined through difficult circumstances where May where refined as we go through the process of difficulties you see, I like this little quote we had a innumerable moments of epic parent stupidity. But when you have more normally have more moments than we can count on epic stupidity. Okay, when you have enough of those, but it is okay that we are not perfect because God the only one who's flawless in his the one who walks with us in our heart knows, I shouldn't done that. Forgive me, forgive me to whomever we hurt God will help us to do the right thing. God will help us to grow our ministry to our children ministry. I minister to our children is made more complete with each season and with each experience. It's the experiences that help us, so that whenever we become old and grandfathers. We give the kids back. The body and the goal is that our children can grow into whatever the role God calls them to be. That's when we have succeeded, not in whether they walk the straight line and do exactly as told, I was disliked that we do walk the straight line digital and then when you reach a certain age of eighteen are twenty two: whatever that is what you do get out of line and those succeeds, you will be a success when you told us an line will not do that anymore. Cannot we consult the call is yes, we have rules and we have a line and brought into the Bible says the straightest path and narrows the way the lease of eternal life stride is a path narrows the way doesn't mean were stuck on the side of a hill walking along a cliff and that were without back to the clip in the files of foot drop in front of us were just trying to keep ourselves from falling off and that's that's the narrow way to heaven. Not it at all. Your drive down the road as guardrails. The wall the side of stoners guardrails on the side straightest path, meaning that there are guidelines to our lives, guidelines don't feel down still don't bear false witness the live dog cheat yourself out of life and you you have this for laying a lane road of God 's provision going in the right direction. He keeps us safe within the guidelines of these rules and of his laws so that we can become the person that God wants us to be stuck on the edge being afraid of falling into hell and hoping that God wants to help us into heaven. We have a great big path of life, and that's what God is teaching us as individuals and what we are providing for children. Thank you, but soft and perfect timing chips are perfect you have all the men, guys. The boys, kids( Anna Tammy Rundle did kids bring them up, daddy, thank you very, very savvy tabby, Gary, come on down three and is not a shovel. I hope yes, the significance is anything ever had him say this so grateful sticking to it. Sticking with it graduating the men, boys, kids have a customized as you like to thought would get with it. I would've their name and so come on down, boys, so I I cut about the flashlights for the little ones, the less you can teach to your little one look at the tool you want than they have to get it for you, but the got flashlights and some keychains and scissors of different sizes and shapes, and even scissors that make patterns and of course these are sung. They get to pick whichever one you want. This was not as men are on. We never grow up to start toys get more expensive. So we're grateful for that work rifle for all of the men and guys, guys, guys were grateful for all of you and your blessings in your leadership and your work that you do here to church your support. We are blessed. Amen. What is let's have our men and father. We are grateful to you that you are our father, you give us the divine example. Lord we pray that by your spirit that we become we grow Lord that we grow on from here. It would become the person that you want us to be. We ask your blessing upon each of us your wisdom and your understanding God. Your love, your inner guidance in all that we say and do we need you more than ever, we pray in Jesus name amen