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For DAD Only:
Love Believes All Things
What will your sons and daughters do in life? Will they rob banks? Will they preach the gospel? Will they live on welfare? Will they be faithful church members?
“How should I know?!” some dads respond. Well, good question. You should know because you have prayed and asked God what His plan is for each of your children. You have asked Him to help you envision His intentions for your mud-slinging, frog-catching eleven-year-old. You have prayed for His mind regarding your tooth-losing, knee-scraping six-year-old.
Kids are a gift from God (although not a free gift, as you know by now). They are not their own, for us to raise and allow them to grow up to be whatever they want. Neither do my children belong to me so I could warp them into the mold of my desires for them. God created them, and He has a purpose for their lives.
As I hear, piece by piece, God’s plan for my sons and daughters, I help prod and lead them in the direction they should go. This won’t happen overnight—God gives us about twenty years. More than just equip them for the call of God on their lives, I must also prepare them to hear His voice. They can’t just do what mom and dad want. They must know the mind of Christ for themselves.
In his book Dedicated to Revival, Missionary T. Wynn Drost tells of difficulties he and his wife faced when trying to shape the lives of their three young men:
When our boys were teenagers, we had some struggles with them. That is normal for any family and for teenagers in general, but my wife and I believed that something was bothering them. One day in prayer, I felt that I received a special insight from the Lord that they were experiencing pressure due to a misunderstanding. So I called them together to talk to them.
I said, “Boys, you know that your mother and I are in the ministry and particularly that we are missionaries. And, in a way, we would love to see you boys also become missionaries someday. But that is something between you and the Lord. We cannot call you, and you must not be missionaries only to please your parents. The truth is that we oniy want the will of God in your lives. If you don’t become missionaries or don’t even enter the ministry, we’re not going to be upset. But one thing I do ask, as a minimum, is that you be Christians and serve the Lord. You must at least determine in your mind that, whatever you decide to do in your life, God must he first. Whether you are in the ministry or simply become a member in a church somewhere, you must always serve and love the Lord.”
My wife and I noticed a marked difference after that. It seemed as if a load or pressure was taken off them. They realized that their direction in life was now their choice. If they did enter the ministry (and we could see the call of God on their lives from their early years), or if they became missionaries, it was not because their parents wanted them to be ministers, but because they made the choice themselves. This they did! (pp. 99-100.)
Today, those three young men are missionaries and pastors. Dad saw God’s plan, but when the time came, he handed them over to the Lord who lead them the rest of the way.
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Dad, read this story with your kids:
Confident in Jesus
Last time: Misty had felt awful all morning and stayed in bed. Rusty had helped her by giving her what she needed and sitting and coloring with her for a while. When Misty complained that she felt miserable and wanted to get better, Rusty suggested that they pray.
“Dear Lord Jesus,” he said, “Misty doesn’t feel well and wants to get up and play. Please take away her sickness and make her feel good again. Thank you that you hear our prayers and answer them. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
“Amen,” Misty said.
Rusty opened his eyes. “Do you feel any better yet?”
She smiled. “I feel sleepy again. What time is it?”
“Almost noon.”
“I think I’ll take another nap.”
“Okay. I’ll go see what Mom’s doing.”
“Good night,” she said, snuggling into her pillow.
“Don’t let the bedbugs bite.”
Rusty left the room and found Mom still working in the kitchen on the wedding cake. “How’s it coming?”
“Good. How’s your sister?”
“She’s sleeping again.”
“That’s probably best.”
“I prayed for her.”
“Good for you, Rusty.”
Rusty smiled.
“She’s got to get better.”
“Why?” he asked.
“Because your father has to work until five o’clock tonight, and I have to be at the church no later than four o’clock.”
Rusty looked at the clock. “She’ll be fine by then,” he said.
Mom pulled a big cake out of the pantry and set it in the middle of the table. She got a bowl out of the refrigerator and opened the lid. Then she grabbed a metal spatula, scooped out the lavender frosting, and began spreading it around the cake.
Just then, the side door opened. Dad walked into the kitchen.
“Hey! You’re home early!” Rusty said.
“Yes, my friend from work dropped me off.” Dad picked up the telephone and dialed. “My pickup truck broke down on the side of the road. The wrecker was supposed to get it. I want to see what is going on with it.”
“Oh, no,” Mom said.
“Will it be expensive?” Rusty asked.
Dad glanced away as someone answered the other end of the phone. “Yes, Brian, did you get to look at my truck yet?… Okay, well, any ideas what it might be?… I understand… You’ve got my number?… Great, I’ll be listening for you… Thank you… All right, bye.”
“They haven’t looked at it yet?” Mom said.
“No. So they have no idea what it will cost yet. I am hoping it won’t be expensive.”
“Well, if it is too expensive, it will have to wait,” Mom said. “You know how tight things are right now.”
“Yeah, I’ve been thinking about that. If we can’t fix the truck, I’ll have to drive the van back to work.”
Mom looked up. “But I have to have this cake to the church by four o’clock and you don’t get off until five.”
Dad frowned. “Right, but you could drop me off and then come get me, couldn’t you?”
“Sure. But I don’t know if Misty is going to feel well enough by then and I can’t leave her here alone.”
“And you really wouldn’t be able to come get me after work,” Dad said, “because you’ll have to stay and serve and you probably won’t get out of the wedding stuff until late, right?”
Mom nodded, trying to think the whole thing out.
Rusty waited until they both stopped talking. “I know what we should do,” Rusty said.
Dad smiled. “I’m open for suggestions.”
“We should pray. Misty will be fine, because we already prayed, so she will be able to go to the church while Mom sets up for the wedding. So let’s pray about your truck.”
“Rusty, I’m sorry,” Dad said. “I’ve been so busy trying to solve everything about the truck, that I’ve forgotten to talk to the Lord about it. Let’s do that now.”
Mom wiped her hands on her apron before she took Rusty and Dad’s hands. The three of them stood in a circle and closed their eyes.
“Rusty, why don’t you start,” Dad said.
“Lord Jesus, you know that my dad’s truck broke down today. We don’t know what is wrong with it because my dad doesn’t like to work on cars. But you know what’s wrong with it. Please help the mechanic find out what’s wrong right away and fix it. And don’t let it cost too much money, because we don’t have a lot this week. Amen.”
“And thank you, Lord,” Dad said, “that the truck didn’t die in the middle of the street, but I was able to get it off the road to a safe place. Thank you for taking care of our problem, Amen.”
“And, Lord,” Mom prayed, “help me to get this cake done and to the church on time for Valerie’s wedding. Amen.”
“Amen,” Rusty said.
The three smiled at each other. Mom hugged Dad and said, “It’s going to be all right.”
“I know,” he said. “I wish I could take the afternoon off to help out. But, I promised to have that project done today.”
Just then, the phone rang. Dad looked at Rusty and raised his eyebrows. “Hello?… Yes, Brian, thanks for calling back so soon…. Yeah,… Okay,…” Dad frowned. “Is that serious?… Oh… You did?… You will?… Well, what will it cost?… Okay, well, thank you for calling right back. Bye.”
Find out next time what happens.
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How did Rusty live out our verse this week?
Love believes all things.
How do you know that Rusty has strong faith in God?
Because he keeps saying that God is going to do it. He seems sure that after he has asked that God will answer.
Does it matter if we believe when we pray? What does Jesus say about this in Mark 11:24?
When we pray we should believe if we want to receive what we ask for.
Do we always get what we ask for?
Why not?
Sometimes our prayers aren’t answered because we don’t believe God will answer them. Other times, God doesn’t answer because it is not His will to do something.
What is something you are believing God for?
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Read the following scripture with the family:
The Girl Who Died of Fever
Mark 5:21-24, 35-43
And when Jesus was passed over again by ship unto the other side, much people gathered unto him: and he was nigh unto the sea.
And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet, and besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live.
And Jesus went with him;… there came from the ruler of the synagogue’s house certain which said, Thy daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master any further?
As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe.
And he suffered no man to follow him, save Peter, and James, and John the brother of James. And he cometh to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them that wept and wailed greatly.
And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth.
And they laughed him to scorn.
But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying. And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise.
And straightway the damsel arose, and walked; for she was of the age of twelve years. And they were astonished with a great astonishment.
And he charged them straitly that no man should know it; and commanded that something should be given her to eat.
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Why did Jarius come to Jesus?
What happened before Jesus got to where the girl was?
How do you think this affected this man’s faith in Jesus?
What did Jesus say to strengthen the man’s faith again?
How did the people react when Jesus told them not to wail and mourn for her? How is this like people’s reaction today when you tell them what you believe God is going to do?
Why do you think Jesus put the people out of the house for?
When Jesus spoke to this twelve year old girl, what happened?
Does God still do things like this today?
Why don’t we hear as many stories about God healing people as we read about in the Bible?
What miracle do you want to see God do?
Would you like to pray and believe God for that right now?