Being Fathered By God – Day 1

As I started today and did a search for a new dad devotional, I found this devotional: Being Fathered By God. The devotional seems very powerful and purposeful as it calls out how “Every man has had authority figures in his life, and much of what a man perceives about God was shaped by those authority figures. His earthly father is at the top of every man’s authority list.” So I took on the offer to join the journey into this devotional. Will you join me on this 14-day journey?

Scripture for today’s devotional:

• Proverbs 22:6

‘Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it. ‘

Proverbs 22:6

God’s Word is active and alive! Spending time in God’s Word is so important as it will give us wisdom and discernment around how to live our lives!

Let’s be the dads who are good examples for our kids! Let’s be the dads who teach and train our kids in accordance and in alignment with God’s Word! Let’s be the dads who take hold of God’s promise that by doing this our kids when they are old they will not turn from it!

Today’s devotional was provided by Michael Thompson where on zoweh.org they share the following: “Every man has had authority figures in his life, and much of what a man perceives about God and projects onto God was shaped by those authority figures. At the top of every man’s authority list is his earthly father. How your dad handled your heart has shaped you and contributed significantly to how you perceive God. Join us for this journey towards experiencing the heart of the Father and getting everything out of the way that is in the way of being a Beloved Son.“

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)

Through zoweh.org, you are able to download today’s devotional and many others.

For more information, please visit https://www.zoweh.org/youversion.

Takeaways from Today’s Devotional:
“Being Fathered“

• Today’s devotional starts with God’s Word:
  • “Train up a child in the way he should go [and in keeping with his individual gift or bent] and when he is old he will not depart from it. –Proverbs 22:6“
  • “Abba (Daddy), Father.”-Jesus
• Today’s devotional speaks to authority figures in our lives and their impact on our lives and our view of God:
  • “Every man has had authority figures in his life, and much of what a man perceives about God and projects onto God was shaped by those authority figures. At the top of every man’s authority list is his earthly father. How your dad handled your heart has shaped you and contributed significantly to how you perceive God.“
• Let’s be the dads who check our hearts and consider the influences that have been on our lives to make sure we aren’t limiting God by putting the character of authority figures on God.
• Let’s be the dads who check our hearts and consider the influences that have been on our lives to make sure we aren’t limiting God by putting the character of our dads on God.
• Today’s devotional speaks to it this way:
  • “The odds of an unsettled heart falling and then arriving at a disoriented man’s view of God and life are 100 percent. You can have all the theology right and still have the Father wrong. Like memorizing facts for a history exam, you can pass the test but still not love the characters, enjoy the story, and engage in the drama. It is the difference between the head versus the heart. Starting from varying degrees of inaccuracy, men must journey individually with God to discover both who they are and who they aren’t—and just as importantly, a man must discover both who the Father is and who he isn’t.“
• Let’s be the dads who ask God to search our hearts and remove anything He finds that lies about Him and His love for us and His character!
• Let’s be the dads who realize God is love! God is light! There is no darkness in God!
• Let’s be the dads who realize that our dads, grandfathers, and up the family tree have had challenges and troubles and as such, it impacted the ways they lived and raised their kids.
• Let’s be the dads who are seeking truth with love in order to live our lives with compassion!
• Let’s be the dads who are seeking the truth with love and are willing to speak with and hear from our dads and what they went through in their lives!
• Let’s be the dads who are seeking to understand first and then have compassion!
• Today’s devotional provides insight into this when it says:
  • “I often hear men say, “Dad did the best he could.” That can be either an excuse or compassion. It all depends on how well the son knows his father’s story. Most thirty to fifty-year-old men don’t know their father’s story and therefore haven’t earned the right to say their dad did his best. What a man discovers from learning his father’s story will change his heart toward his father. Misinterpretation and excuses are replaced with understanding and compassion.“
• Let’s be the dads who consider and reflect the men, the authority, and the people in our lives and their impact on who we are, how we live, and our views of God!
• Let’s be the dads who consider and reflect the men, the authority, and the people in our lives and their impact on the state of our hearts!
• Today’s devotional speaks to this as follows:
  • “Besides our dads, many other authority figures have had access to our hearts along the journey. Some had a positive impact, but there were others who should have provided for us and protected us—but didn’t. Tough coaches who punished us with extra wind sprints, challenging teachers who enjoyed pointing out when we answered wrong, preachers yelling at us, older siblings embarrassing us, mothers controlling us, so-called “friends” lost in their own small stories betraying us: all of these reflect a reality I continually stress with a maxim I hope you’ll memorize: wounded hearts wound hearts.“
• Let’s be the dads who invite Jesus into our hearts and ask Him to help clean it up and clean it out, bringing healing and restoration into our lives!
• Today’s devotional closes by challenging us during our time alone with God to:
  • “Ask God to help you make a list of the authority figures in your life and what they taught, bestowed, offered your heart about you, the world, God, and life.“
  • “What is your earthly father’s story?“
  • “How do you see the Father’s love for you?“