Take a moment and remember something your Dad has said to you, either good or bad. Perhaps even something he didn't say, that you wished he had. (i.e. "I love you" or "I'm proud of you"). Some guys brush that off saying it's not very manly and yet I beg to differ if you could realize the return it would have on your children to hear those words come out of your mouth, I believe we would all learn to loosen our tongues in such affirming and loving ways.
Words matter.
Fact is words are powerful. Whoever taught us “sticks and stones will break my bones but
words will never harm me”, lied. The Bible teaches us “death and life are in
the power of the tongue”. We have the power to speak life into people and we
have the power to speak death as well. (Prov
18:21) I’d say that’s pretty powerful!
Proverbs 15:4 The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a
perverse tongue crushes the spirit.
Proverbs 16:24 Gracious words are
a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.
When God SPOKE, the heavens and the
earth were created. In fact, you could argue that the spoken word might be one
of the most powerful things in existence. So, it stands to reason that words
people say matter. They are powerful. I believe this is why hearing words from
one of the most important people in our lives, our father, have such a huge
impact on us.
The apostle Paul when addressing the family specifically makes mention to the fathers both times, reminding them of the influence they have.
Ephesians 6:4 Fathers,
do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and
instruction of the Lord.
Col 3:21 Fathers,
do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged.
Roger is an amazing father. The words "I love you" flow out of him constantly to the kids. If you asked any of our three children, they would instantly tell you with deep conviction that he adores them all! I realize how much of this even stemmed from his own father whom he loved so much. His dad would tell him every day that he loved him. I can see the power of strength that came from that affirmation in Roger's life now. As I began to look at this insight more through the lens of scripture, I realized that our Heavenly Father (God) spoke from heaven 3 times all of which were to his Son, Jesus. And two specific times they almost had the exact same words!! It was crazy. I thought it would do we me well to study what was so important that 1. The Father would literally speak from heaven 2. That He would say those same words twice, they obviously must be important and 3. What did words did He actually speak?
He spoke three simple lines with the most weight and return we could ever imagine. If only we would take them to our own hearts and let them sink so deeply that they would become the words we hear every single day.
"You are my son." (You are MY child....)
"Whom I love." (I LOVE YOU.......)
"With you I am well pleased." (I am PROUD of you).
This is mentioned not in one but all the gospels. (Matt 3, Mark 1, Luke 3, John 1) Pretty crazy. Pretty AWESOME!
What a public display of intimate affection with the Father and the Son.... but the most amazing part is it is now that same affection He lavishes on us, HIS KIDS! If we believe in Christ and desire Him to be Lord of our life, asking for his forgiveness, He adopts us! He gives us of HIS Spirit and pours it in our hearts which guarantees our inheritance proving that we are His Children.
Romans 8:9,14-16 "Those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by Him we cry 'Abba, Father' (which means "Daddy"). The Spirit himself testifies with our Spirit that we are God's children."
The more we as God's children (His own sons and daughters) realize how MUCH the Father truly loves us... the more confident we become. The more He leads, the more we obey. For we begin to realize He really desires the best for us, and loves us without conditions. We begin to finally trust, which has always been his desire. And then we become a great threat to the enemy for his lies, shame, guilt, don't control us ... he loses his hold. For he knows He stands no chance WHEN the true revelation of God's love to you His (Son/Daughter) is understood and received.
Receive His love afresh this Father's Day. May it be a turning point in your life. Here's to a Father will become so proud of and who constantly delights in you!
Isaiah 43:4 (He gave me this verse in my life years ago.... when he truly became my Father. I mean not just in words, but in life).
Oh How He loves me....(sigh).
Oh How He LOVES YOU.... (smile).
