Just For Dads: Be A Positive Christian Role Model – Day 14

Yesterday’s takeaway was about the dangers of pride, titled “Help yourself to everything“! I found a devotional that was a bit longer and that sounded powerful as a message so that it could help us learn and become the dads God created and purposed for us to be. So I chose “Just For Dads: Be A Positive Christian Role Model” because, over 21 days, we will get to read and learn about how to be a positive Christian role model for our family! Over 21 days, we will get to learn about topics like: “self-discipline, love, patience, and much more
! This devotional will not only help us be the dads but it will also help us “in our day-to-day life to show our children what it truly means to be a role model and follower of Christ in every sense“.

Today’s Devotionals Scripture:

• 1 Timothy 5:1-8

‘Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity. Give proper recognition to those widows who are really in need. But if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God. The widow who is really in need and left all alone puts her hope in God and continues night and day to pray and to ask God for help. But the widow who lives for pleasure is dead even while she lives. Give the people these instructions, so that no one may be open to blame. Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. ‘

1 Timothy 5:1-8

Do you realize the importance of God’s Word? Do you realize the value of God’s Word? Do you realize how having a solid foundation makes a huge difference in being able to build a good life? Do you realize how having a firm foundation allows you to stand firm through the storms and the waves, the troubles and the trials, and the wind and whatever comes your way? So let’s be the dads who build our lives upon God’s high standards given to us through His Word!

Let’s be the dads who lead by example and treat older men with respect, not rebuking harshly but rather exhorting as if he were your father! Let’s be the dads who treat younger men like brothers! Let’s be the dads who treat older women like mothers! Let’s be the dads who treat younger women as sisters! Let’s be the dads who do all of this with absolute purity! Let’s be the dads who put our religion into practice by caring for our own family and repaying our parents and grandparents in a way that will please God! Let’s be the dads who demonstrate our religion as defined as true religion by taking care of widows and orphans! Let’s be the dads who provide for our relatives! Let’s be the dads who provide for our household! Let’s be the dads who provide in order to not be found denying our faith and being considered worth than an unbeliever!

Today’s devotional has been provided by Zondervan!

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)

For more information, please visit Just For Dads: Be A Positive Christian Role Model | Devotional Reading Plan | YouVersion Bible for more details.

Takeaways from Today’s Devotional:
“You are here“

• Ever been somewhere and not knowing where you were?
• Ever wandered hoping to find a landmark of sorts that lets you know where you are? Like a map that has a “you are here”?
• Ever had to ask for directions?
• Let’s be the dads who aren’t so proud that we won’t stop and ask for directions!
• Let’s be the dads who aren’t so proud that we won’t stop to find out where we are!
• Let’s be the dads who grab hold of God’s Word as He provides us with instructions on how to treat others and understand where we are at today!
• Let’s be the dads who realize where we are and how we are or have been treating people!
• Let’s be the dads who go from being hearers of the Word or thinkers of the Word to being doers of the Word!
• We need to be living and modeling how to live!
• Let’s go beyond saying and thinking to start doing and living!
• Consider if we are but hearers and thinkers when faced with the statements from today’s devotional:
  • “But all of these instructions are a waste of space unless you and I take an honest look at where we are. If, when we read this list, we say to ourselves, Respecting older men? I do that. Treating young men with friendship and not condescension? I do that. Honoring older women? I do that. Esteeming young women and revering their purity? I do that. Providing for my family’s every need? I do that, too. “
• Let’s be the dads who realize that life is a lot of hard work!
• Let’s be the dads who people can count on!
• Let’s be the dads who people look to and see that we are not only hearers or speakers of the Word but are doers of the Word!
• Let’s be the dads who people watch and see that even under pressure we honor others and we honor them!
• Let’s be the dads who live with such conviction that even when nobody else (that we know) is looking, we choose to live our lives in a way that will glorify God!
• Let’s be the dads who don’t coast but daily work on being the men God is calling us to be through today’s scripture!
• Let’s be the dads who take inventory of our relationships and how we are living so that we can adjust and improve how we choose to live our lives in order to be doers of the Word of God and live in alignment with today’s scripture!
• Let’s be the dads who honestly take stock of where we are at and what we need to do!
• Let’s be the dads who reflect seriously so that we can see or find where we are living selfishly, dishonoring others, or even in laziness!
• Let’s be the dads who grab hold of God’s instruction so that we can help bring healing and restoration to relationships!
• Today’s devotional closes with this prayer:
  • ““Father in Heaven,” we may need to humbly confess, “I am impatient with my elders, patronizing to young people, unaware of people in need, and insensitive to my family. But Your presence helps me to admit my lostness, Your grace forgives me of these failings, and Your wisdom gives me the direction I need. Thank you. Amen.”“