As we continue this year the next plan I have selected to go through is “Rad Dad!” which is a 6 day devotional through the Bible.com site.
Day 3 – How has becoming a father changed your perspective on a Father’s love for his children?
Today’s devotional is connected with Proverbs 3:5, Matthew 14:29, and 1 John 4:17-20.
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
Proverbs 3:5
“Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.
Matthew 14:29
17By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. 18There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 19We love, because He first loved us. 20If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.
1 John 4:17-20
Reflecting on today’s verses I think of times when things didn’t make sense to me and how I had to turn to God. I remember not understanding and had to grab hold of the truth of Proverbs 3:5 and trust God with all my heart, knowing that His plans for me are good and that He is love. I remember having to turn to Him, acknowledging Him and trusting that He would make my path straight. I remember how by trusting God, I had a time when God called me out of the boat in order to make a change in my life. I remember after having this story as part of my morning reading praying that if the company I was working for at the time was the boat and I was supposed to get out, could He tell me what side and the message came to me through a tweet (within minutes) that said get out of the boat. (Just realized today the parallel of my prayer to Peter’s response where “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” – Matthew 14:28-29. So I started the journey of being ready knowing in the right time He would make it clear where to step. I was so sure I started updating my LinkedIn profile and resume and started applying for job. Since He hadn’t given me a specific company I felt I didn’t have to quit on the spot but would continue working hard while knocking on all the doors (even companies I wasn’t sure I would want to work at) as I felt led. I didn’t have to walk in doubt or fear but instead could believe in God’s calling me to move on. I I could walk in the confidence that because I believed the love God has for me, I could grab hold of His love to strengthen, encourage, and enbolden me to go where He calls me to go. I could feel His Spirit in me and with me through it . God is love and I knew from God’s Word the definition of love from 1 Corinthians 13 and that love never fails! What’s incredible to me about today’s verse from 1 John 4 is how it speaks to the confidence I felt walking in His will. It speaks to the lack of fear I felt walking in His love. God is so good and loves us so much that He gave, He gave His one and only Son that whosoever would believe on Him would not perish. So today as we turn the focus to today’s devotional and we prepare for the day ahead, let’s grab hold of and walk in close and intimate relationship with Jesus.
Today’s devotional has been provided by Varsity Skateboarding Organization (more details can be found here: https://varsityskate.org/).
Reading through today’s devotional, here are some takeaways for me: (check out the devotional on your own too to see if you pick up other nuggets, and please share your findings in the comments)
- Before you perform the act that can make you a dad have you considered the risk, the learning, and the potential pain that comes with it?
- Are you prepared to be the dad the child needs you to be when they hurt themselves?
- Are you prepared to be the dad the child needs you to be by pointing them to Jesus and showing them how to keep their eyes on Him?
- Are you prepared to be the dad the child needs you to be by watching over them and the circle of friends you choose?
- Are you prepared to be the dad the child needs you to be by being present, even in moments when they make major life-altering mistakes?
- Are you prepared to be the dad the child needs you to be by loving them them so much that you will stand with them through thick and thin, even if that means having to deal with a situation of a freak accident or even a disease taking them too soon?
- Are you feeling the call to be a dad by God?
- Are you ready to answer that call?
- Are you ready to say “yes” to God’s call to care for a life you can’t control?
- Are you ready to say “yes” to God’s call to step into a path you can’t pave?
- Are you ready to say “yes” to God’s call to father a faith you can’t save?
- Are you ready to say “yes” to God’s call and saying “no” to the lie that says you are in charge of what happens next?
- Consider the parallels between this and God’s verses for today.
- When Jesus called Peter out of the boat to walk on water.
- When Proverbs askes you not to lean on your own understanding.
- Are you ready to take on the challenge like David staring down Goliath and when something happens being there to hug them, love them, encourage them, and cheering them on for even trying?
- Do you realize the power of faith and courage?
- Do you realize the impact it can have on your family, friends, and community?
- Are you ready to allow faith to overwhelm the fears?
- Are you ready to help others become faith-filled and start breaking free from their own fears?
- Are you ready to help others start to be able to live lives where they can overwhelm fear with faith?
- Do you want to help them realize that faith is the antidote of fear?
- Remember from today’s verse in 1 John that said “perfect love casts out fear”?
- Let’s be love motivated!
- Let’s be ready because we are love motivated!
- Let’s be ready to show our kids what courageous love looks like!
- Let’s allow love to become contagious so that our kids, our family, our friends, and our world can be transformed.
- Let’s be ready to lean in!
- Let’s be ready to trust God!
- Let’s be ready to let go and instead let God!
- Let’s choose today to lean into God’s courageous love!
