A Blessed Father's Day, 2017

By Douglas V. Gibbs
Author, Speaker, Instructor, Radio Host

Happy Father’s Day.

After a full day with my wife, I am finally ready to sit down and write down a few thoughts.  I slept in for Father’s Day (something I rarely have a chance to do. . . and by sleeping in I mean that I didn’t get out of bed until 7:00 am), spent some time with the grandchildren who live in my house, had a Greek Gyro sandwich for lunch and had a brief discussion with the restaurant owner who is a friend of mine (Hands down, Siggys has the best gyros in town), saw The Mummy starring Tom Cruise (l am glad I only paid matinee, it was okay, but would not be worth the price of full admission), went shopping with my wife, took a nap, and just finished a Subway sandwich.

I appreciate the time my wife took from her schedule to spend the day with me.

Few things in life are more special than being a husband and a father.  Few responsibilities are more important, as well.  It can be a hard road, but a blessed one, too.

I am the Father of two, and I have seven grandchildren.  My relationships with my two children, a son of 32 and a daughter of 26, are very different from each other.  My daughter is quite distant, but not by geography.  My son wears a thick wall around himself, but appreciates me as a grandfather to his three rugrats.

The thing is, no matter what your relationships with your children, being dad is a very important role.  You must be a monetary provider, emotional provider, and godly provider.  When they grow up, your role changes slightly, and takes on a less direct capacity.  Unfortunately, in this day and age, for many it is easier just to bail.

God Bless all of you Dads who have stuck it out, done whatever it takes, and have been the anchor of your family unit. You are an important building block to our society, because strong traditional family units make for strong civilizations.

Genesis 18:19, King James Version (KJV): For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.

Psalm 103:13, King James Version (KJV): Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him.

Psalm 68:4-5, King James Version (KJV): Sing unto God, sing praises to his name: extol him that rideth upon the heavens by his name JAH, and rejoice before him. A father of the fatherless, and a judge of the widows, is God in his holy habitation.

Hebrews 12:7: Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?