“Honor thy father
and thy mother…”
(Exodus 20:12)
Sounds simple enough,
right?
:)
Any of you that have
parents (which better include all of you!! ;-) know that statement is
not always true. We know we need to, and should, honor and obey our
parents, but as fleshly, sinful human beings, honor, submission, and obedience
are not things that always come easily for us.
But I’d like to focus
on the relationship between you (as a young woman) and your father, for the
next few moments. :-)
I am currently in the process of reading a book about the
Biblical design for fathers and daughters and just how far our society at large
and even we as Christians have strayed from the multitudes of examples laid out
for us in Scripture.
The book and its
authoresses strongly advocate returning to this model laid out for us in
Scripture, which is something that the Lord has actually been bringing to pass
in my own life over the course of the last few years (right before and
ever since my graduation from home school—programmed/ Christian high-school).
I’m not perfect, and neither is my Daddy (although he is
quite wonderful! :-) ),
and I understand that while many young ladies and their (your) fathers (and
mothers) will agree with me on the general principle concerning this
issue, we each have a personalized way that we go about it, based on the way
that the Lord is teaching us, leading us, and revealing to us through His Word.
J
I also realize, that through no fault of your own, not all of you have great
relationships with your fathers—and some, quite honestly, may have harsh or
hateful fathers. L
So, I am not here to tell you that what you are doing is
wrong, or to tell you how great I am because I am doing what I believe
to be right. Neither am I here to riddle those who suffer from any type of
fatherly mistreatment or neglect with guilt. Rather, I just want to share with
you a recent blessing I have received from going “out of my comfort zone” to
confide in my father… and what joy, comfort, and relief I was blessed
with as a result.
A couple days ago, I was reading in this book, and came
across a very significant portion. The question is posed
“What kind of attitude does God want me to have toward
my father?”
Of course, several answers are briefly discussed (this is
a very encompassing topic J for one to cover in depth lol), and some of it is
very cut and dry and Biblical (Exodus 20:12) (Ephesians 6:1)
even (Ephesians 5:33). But the one paragraph that really
caught my attention was this:
“Confiding in our fathers (and, of course, our mothers)
is another way we can show them honor. When we let our fathers know our
hearts—our struggles, our weaknesses, our hopes and dreams—it
encourages them to pay closer attention to the instruction and guidance they
give us. Our fathers can better protect us if they know our weaknesses and
struggles and can better lead us when they know what direction we want to
be going.”
I could already attest from personal experience that more
than one of these statements was and is true, but God was about to use
it and the fatherly protection he has placed over my life, yet again, to
strengthen and encourage me.
There was (oh and still is LLL) a certain sin
that I am struggling with right now. It is one of those ones that is not obvious
to anybody, but I certainly know it is there, and it was bothering me. I
felt awful. I remembered having read this paragraph the next morning
when I again found myself struggling in this area. (Funny how the Lord works
things out all in perfect timing—just when you need it—isn’t it? J)
So I confided to my daddy what I was (am) struggling with.
I could not do it verbally, so I wrote him a note a little before he left for
work and would not let him read it in my presence lol. So he finished
getting ready and left for work, while I went downstairs to my room, laid down
on my bed, and struggled with guilt, discouragement, and a seeming
inability to pray. L I could not take not knowing what he thought, so I
texted him, asking if he’d read it and if he had any advice to offer.
No reply.
Not a comforting response!!!!! Lol J
So again lol I sent him a text…
This time, his answer came—
In the form of a 5 page reply
♥♥
And the words of encouragement and counsel he had to
offer, by the grace of God, brought me to tears of relief.
By God’s grace, my dad was able to give me sound
instruction and wise counsel exactly for the struggle I was and am
facing. (Proverbs 1:8) (Proverbs 4:1) (Proverbs 13:1) (Proverbs 15:32-33)
(Proverbs 19:20 & 27) (Proverbs 24:6) (2 Timothy 3:16)
But my daddy would never have been able to give
that advice (neither would I have been able to receive itL)
if I had not first opened my heart voluntarily to him. He never would
have known, he would not be praying for me concerning this, and I would have
received no instruction if I had kept this part of me to myself.
The same is true of you, dear sister. I am not perfect.
Neither have I arrived because I did this.
I simply hope to encourage you to do the same! If there is
something you are struggling with, need advice/counsel concerning, perhaps an
unfulfilled dream, or a burden the Lord has laid on your heart that you are
having a hard time bringing to reality, I encourage you, dear sister!
First, take it to your Heavenly Father, and then (prayerfully, if
need beJ)
take it in a humble, submissive manner, to your earthly father.
Open your heart to him in the same way that you would to your Savior. It will
not be as easy. I could not bring myself to confide in Daddy out loud,
so I wrote him a note, and gave it to himJ. But the results were
equally amazing.
The blessings you can receive, by God’s grace, by being
‘vulnerable’ to your father far outweigh the ‘security’ you will experience if
you do not. You may never know what blessings (in your walk with Christ and
your father) if you do not!!
Just as you, Lord willingly, share your heart with your
Savior, and just as you will one day give your heart to your Husband, share
your inner thoughts, dreams, and struggles NOW with the man the Lord has
in place at this very moment as the authority in your life.
It will not be easy…
But, dear sister, it is so WORTH IT!!!
