(1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer, and perfecter of faith) Hebrews 12:1

When I was in junior high, my dad started waking my brother and me up early in the morning and doing morning devotionals. Something in my heart fell in love with those mornings but my dad did not continue to do those a.m. devotionals. I’m not sure if my dad felt like his efforts were not producing fruit or we weren’t listening or if he just grew tired of getting up early and doing these am devotionals with us. This was something that was really special to me, but I never told him. I never expressed that I wished he would continue on with the am devotionals.

Now that I have children, I have started waking up my oldest daughter (early grade school) in the mornings and having morning devotions with her as often as I can. In the back of my mind, I wonder at times if she really enjoys these or if she’s getting anything out of it. I know when I think these things, it’s my pride wondering if it’s sinking in or the Deceiver trying to discourage me. I know it’s not my job to make anything sink in, but it’s my job to be faithful and to train my children up in perusing Him.

At times life gets really busy with early morning workdays and I don’t wake her up. I also find myself in ruts where I’m not making this a priority with her as much as I should. But when my daughter asks why I haven’t been waking her up to do am devotionals with her, it melts my heart and I thank God for that and it gives me great encouragement to continue to run the race that’s been marked out for me as a dad.

“A man cannot be passive about what Scripture tells him to do for his family and expect to be found faithful to God in the end. He must see with spiritual eyes and realize that future generations are directly impacted by his daily decisions.”
—The Resolution for Men

The Resolution for Men

ALEX KENDRICK, RANDY ALCORN, STEPHEN KENDRICK

This is a wonderful book that helps us dads see the importance of how to love our children and our wives. This book has made a profound impact on my life as a dad and husband. Any dads who are looking at how to lead their families better, this is a must-read!

Q: How Did You Intentionally Make Being A Father To Your Children All About Christ? (Ephesians 3:14-21)

A: When I was a young parent and my daughters were 8 and 12 years old, I found myself searching for more wisdom and knowledge on how to be the kind of dad God wanted me to be. I knew that he had given me the family I had prayed for all my life and I didn’t want to take that lightly. As a Christian Counselor, I also was aware of the profound role a Father plays in the lives and future of daughters. But I had a revelation that I was making it all about me. COINCIDENTALLY my pastor preached a sermon on Ephesians 3:14-21 during this time and I had one of those AHA Holy Spirit moments. It became very clear to me through these passages the greatest thing that could happen to my beautiful girls was to ‘’KNOW THE LOVE OF CHRIST AND THE FULLNESS OF HIM’’.  So, from that day forward my prayer for daughters who are now 36 and 32 is that their intimacy with Christ would grow and be the guiding force for how they do marriage, parenting, and life. I consider Ephesians 3:14-21 as our Family Verses that I pray over it regularly.

(Ephesians 3:14-21) For this reason, I kneel before the Father, ¹⁵ from whom every family^[a] in heaven and on earth derives its name. ¹⁶ I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Q: How Did You Apply This Desire For Your Girls To “Know The Love OF Christ And The Fullness Of Him” In Their Lives?

A: I realized that God was pursuing me, and I had to make a decision to accept that unbelievable offer or run from it; I.e. busyness, career, sports. When I came to this truth, the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to the need to create a Holy Spot where I could meet Jesus regularly. In my case, it became a screen porch where the Lord spoke to me about life and how to be a Dad. Specifically, I recall being convicted one Saturday morning about my usual Golf game. It was all but an audible voice that clearly told me I was picking Golf with my buddies over my family. Another time I had a ‘’still small voice” whisper to me that I should start dating the three women in my life. So Dairy Queen breakfasts and creek walking became part of our family culture. All this to say the Lord was FAITHFUL to teach me more and more about his secrets for an abundant Family life. I think the Greatest teaching tool is modeling. There is nothing like your children seeing you on your knees or sitting in your Holy Spot speaking and listening to God. It all starts with a decision do I accept Jesus’s incredible gift of his intimacy with me.

To contact Steve Roark, please email him at steve.roark56@gmail.com or you can call him at 662-571-7803. www.msmarriagecounseling.org/staff.html

Caught Red Handed: (Anonymous Submission)

I am the father of four great young men. The range in ages from twenty-one to thirteen. They are respectful, kind, and focused young men. They are all different as night and day. They each have their own ways about how they act and react. They all have two things in common: They love the Lord and I have caught all four of them looking at something inappropriate on the internet.

This is a subject that I believe is brushed under the rug far too often and many pastors will not preach about it from the pulpit. Pornography is a plague on our children. In my younger days, you had to have an “older” brother or an uncle with less than stellar morals to get your hands on a magazine or a video. Today, our children are subjected to this, not in dark corners or in stores that you hope they do not notice when you drive past, they are confronted with this every night when we turn on the TV or anytime they get on the internet.

When my oldest son was caught the first time, it was on Google. He was not surfing the web on porn sites. He was googling for pictures of naked women. His mother was shocked. I was less than pleased but not at all shocked. He was an adolescent boy with raging hormones and a head full of questions. I sent him to his room and I contemplated what I would say when I walked in to speak with him. I even reached out for guidance from my older and wiser friends. And below is what I came up with to confront the problem head-on.

Psalm 119:37 says, “Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways.”
I explained that the things he was searching for were natural but that God has a plan for every milestone in his life. God wanted him to reserve the knowledge of the body of the opposite sex until he was married to the woman he loved. I also reminded him of Jesus’ time spent in the desert under temptation from the Devil. It was the time before Christ’s ministry began and a time when the enemy tested and tried Christ to get him to sin. I explained that I did not expect him to never fail, but that I did expect him to be diligent in the attempt to live by Christ’s example.

I left him with this verse found in 1st Corinthians 10:12-13, which says, “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands to take heed lest he falls. No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation, he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”

Another step I took later with my other sons was installing a VPN on their computers and handheld devices. Covenant Eyes is made to block access to inappropriate material and it will give a daily report that you can use to encourage your sons and daughters. Ladies, girls struggle with this too. Don’t be fooled for a minute. It isn’t something we like to talk about but it is going on.

The key to overcoming this is communication. It is the loving way you handle the issue. If you react in a spirit of fear and anger, shame will take over and they will start to hide this behavior in ways you cannot even begin to imagine. In addition, folks, if you struggle or have struggled with this, tell them. Explain that you are no different than they are and that you are willing to do whatever is necessary to break this chain in their lives.