A Father's Day Tribute

Over the past weekend, I have read many tributes on social media to fathers as we celebrated another Father’s Day . . . so this is my tribute to my father, who moved into his heavenly home over 7 years ago.

 

My Dad was a hands-on father before it was fashionable, sharing with my Mom in every aspect of baby and child care.  He took his responsibility seriously and was involved in and interested in every part of my life.  He said “I love you” freely and also showed it in his actions.  I never had to wonder if I was important to my Dad.

 

My Dad always protected me and treated the women in his life with respect.  Because his actions taught me that I was worthy of respect, I was able to avoid relationships with men who didn’t show me respect.  I learned about selfless giving by watching the way my Dad treated my Mom and the rest of his family.

  

My Dad came from the humble beginnings of a broken home and as the stepson of a sharecropper in New Mexico.  He was a hard worker who provided well for his family with only a high school education, and he wasn’t interested in wealth or fame.  He focused on things of lasting value and lived a quiet life.

And this is perhaps what I am most thankful for when I think about my Dad.  Even though he didn’t have a godly example of parenting, by God’s grace Dad gave his children what they needed to grow into responsible adults who love God.  A girl’s relationship with her father affects the relationship she later has with God, and Dad was the kind of father that a little girl needs.  It has always been easy for me to trust God completely as an adult because my father was completely trustworthy and faithful.  He daily modeled unconditional love – the kind of love God has for us; so accepting God’s love for me has been an easy road.

My Dad was not a perfect man; but he got a lot of the things that really matter right.  Every Father’s Day, I thank God for allowing me to have a Dad who was a faithful man of integrity with a kind, gentle, patient, and giving spirit.  I miss you, Dad!

“Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.”                     Ephesians 6:4

Choose Your Thoughts Wisely

Over the past few weeks, I’ve had a lot of opportunities to choose my thoughts.  Since I finished getting settled into our new home, I’ve had more free time than usual.  Yes, I am still a homemaker, which includes outside as well as inside chores this time of year.  But, although I’m not one who “goes” a lot (I have always loved being home), moving to a new city has temporarily stopped the few activities I regularly participated in – like women’s Bible study and our small group from church.   And I’ve discovered that too much free time can be Satan’s playground.

Most people who find themselves with a lot of free time fill their lives with more activities; but more activity isn’t necessarily the best solution either.  The apostle Paul told us what we need to do:  “. . . take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).  However, I don’t think most people are completely comfortable with their own thoughts – and this can lead to the opportunity for Satan to move in and take over.  You see, according to this verse, thinking about the right things takes effort – while thinking about the wrong things happens naturally. 

There are only two choices given to us in this world: we can choose God, or we can choose Satan.  Despite what we have been told by our culture, neutrality is a myth.  We are either on God’s side or on Satan’s side (Romans 8:5-8).  So every failure to take our thoughts captive for God is a success for Satan, whether we consciously choose him or not.  And I have found that it is much easier to stay settled in wrong thoughts than to always fight the enemy’s influence in our lives.  And whatever occupies your mind directs your life. 

So what are you allowing to occupy your mind?  When you don’t have to be thinking about something like work, raising children, and other daily living tasks, where does your mind tend to drift?  For me, it can be depression, negative thoughts about other people, or mindless things like television or social media.  But if every thought is to be taken captive to make it obedient to Christ, then any thought besides God can become an idol and give Satan a place of entrance into my life.  I may not consciously choose the enemy, but I need to make sure that I am consciously choosing God. 

Here are some things that I have found helpful in choosing right thoughts: daily time in God’s Word (I just read through books of the Bible and ask God to teach me); talking to God, my best friend, off and on all day long (I’m the queen of “arrow prayers”); looking for things to be thankful about (I usually don’t have to look far); and trying to bloom wherever God plants me (even in a new city).  When I focus on myself, I usually go down the wrong path; but when I focus on God, my thoughts are taken captive for his purposes and his glory.