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Light illuminates, warms, and lifts the spirit; never being subject to the powers of darkness...
Father’s day is the analogous counterpart to Mother’s Day; a special day reserved for celebrating the parental figures in our lives. Though some may consider Mother’s Day to hold more value, Father’s Day is just as important. Depending on how your parents are wired, they may desire more or less, in how you show them your appreciation. None-the-less, active fathers should receive the same level of honor as active mothers.
This may be a sore area for those whose relationship with their father is sour or non-existent. However, there are men who do all they can to appropriately raise and support their children. It’s a shame that some of us men fall short as fathers because that does not showcase how wonderful a father our heavenly Father is. God intended for us to reflect His values in how we love those we father.
Exodus 20:12 is explicit in giving the first command that comes with a promise, “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.” Living a long healthy life in the land the Lord gives me sounds wonderful because whatever God gives us is good and for our benefit. But how do I honor a parent that does not honor me? What do I do when a parent is toxic or estranged?
Honoring the Dishonorable
As a father myself, I discovered the rewards and adversities of raising children. Life can be arduous enough caring for yourself but bringing up children in this world is a special challenge in and of itself. The grace that I stumbled upon throughout my process has trained me in righteous resilience. That meaning, that we can embrace the person or lesson but reject the perversion and wicked intent behind the offense.
To honor a parent that has offended you comes with understanding, compassion, and maturity. One way to overcome their offense is by reminding yourself of their humanity. As humans, we are fallible, often making mistakes that offend others in our ignorance, intolerance, and selfish ways. Give them into God’s hands by praying for those who persecute you (Matthew 5:44). Also, ask God to help you forgive them as He has forgiven you (Ephesians 4:32).
Some father figures may struggle with pride and possession. In this way, they may not want to receive your honor without your strict obedience to their commands. Not everything some parents teach or require are healthy or biblical. In this case, if you can, you may need to honor them from a distance. Draw near to Christ, allowing the Holy Spirit to counsel you on how to approach or interact with a father who is abusive or overbearing. You can learn to love them and honor them from a safe distance, praying for their deliverance without being within reach of their tyrannical behavior.
The deserving Father
It wouldn’t be until 58 years after Mother’s Day was established as a national holiday by President Woodrow Wilson, that Father’s Day would be recognized in 1972 as a nationwide holiday. Thanks to the efforts of Sonora Smart Dodd, the daughter of a single father, William Jackson Smart, Father’s Day came to be.
While attending a church service, Sonora listened intently to Anna Jarvis’s solicitation of Mother’s Day. What she heard prompted her to want to honor her hard working father in the same way. On June 19th, 1910, Sonora celebrated her father at a local YMCA in Spokane, Washington where they lived. She coined this celebration as Father’s Day.
There are father’s who are absent, alienated, and even abusive but there are also father’s who are working diligently to be a positive force in their child's life. Whatever the case, God our heavenly Father shows us how to be honorable fathers and respectable children. The Lord, our God, is the Father of heavenly lights (James 1:17). Though He is invisible, His light is visible through the power of His creative nature. He is a Father, deserving of all our praise, worship, and honor!
the father of heavenly lights
Light illuminates, warms, and lifts the spirit by way of correction, cleansing, and encouragement. The dawn shines brightly, providing visibility where darkness once hid lurking dangers and concealed activities. The sun's radiance dismisses the chill of the night, swaddling creation in its warm embrace. If God is the Father of heavenly lights while also being the very Source of that light, imagine how much greater His brilliance and fervent tenderness is towards us, His children, and first fruits of creation.
James 1:17 lays it out for us, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, with whom there is no change or shifting shadow.” As we consider our natural fathers, we must hold in higher esteem our heavenly Father. He is not only the Source of our cosmic lights, but He is also the Self-existent life that manifests divine illumination through His love, compassion, and spiritual gifts. Jesus Christ is the perfect impartation of God’s light, which indwells in each believer by way of the Holy Spirit.
Unlike natural fathers or heavenly bodies, He does not change, turning and shifting in and out of darkness. God never mutates or varies. He doesn’t shift like shadows that are created and move by casting lights. Our heavenly Father does not change, being short at midday and lengthy at night, altered by the shifting sun. The only absolute reference point, the Lord is Light, Power, and Life all within Himself, immutably reliable at all times.
The Father of heavenly lights will never abandon His children. As heirs of Christ, we have security in our covenant with the Father that allows us to abandon all fear, worry, and doubt. Exercise bold confidence in God the Father because it is impossible for Him to fail or lie (Ephesians 3:12, Joshua 21:45, Hebrews 6:18). Honor God as fathers by modeling after His examples in the Word. Honor God as children by paying homage and respect, honoring His Word, especially towards your parents.
Scripture Reference:
1 John 3:1 (NIV)
"See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 3 All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure."
Thank You and God Bless!
Thank you for reading this blog. Your support and contribution is treasured here. Please continue to share this content so that God may work through us to be a benefit to others. I invite you to leave a comment and stay tuned in for the next blog. I pray that this blesses you and honor’s God. Let’s continue growing together as Kingdom Citizens in Christ. Show love, be kind, and trust in God. Thank you and God bless.
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