June 20, 2004

A Father's Blessing

Be tenderhearted, be courteous; not returning evil for evil . . . , but on the contrary blessing. —1 Peter 3:8-9

Bible In One Year: Esther 1-2; Acts 5:1-21

A man who was grieving the death of his father said, "I am crying not only for my father, but for me. His death means that I'll never hear the words I always wanted to hear from him: that he was proud of me, proud of the family I've raised and the life I've lived."

Instead of repeating his father's mistake, the man later gave his own son the words of encouragement he himself had never heard, saying he was proud of him and the life he had made.

Too often, tension between fathers and children are left unresolved. Old wounds remain unhealed. We are unwilling to forgive the angry words and hurts from the past. But for the sake of ourselves and our families, we need to do what we can to dismantle the walls of separation between us.

How can we begin? The Bible's command for all our relationships is: "Love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous, not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing . . . . Turn away from evil and do good; . . . seek peace and pursue it" (1 Peter 3:8-9,11).

Let's determine by God's grace to break the cycle of anger and give our children what they long to hear from us—words of blessing and love. —David McCasland

Our children need to know we care,
That when they need us we'll be there;
For deep within they need to hear
That they are loved by someone dear. —D. De Haan

The best thing you spend on your children is your time.