As I begin today and consider the importance of being present, being willing to sacrifice, and being generous are top of mind. As I turn to Day 5 of today’s devotional, it turns me to consider how to continue to become more and more connected as a follower of Jesus, as a husband, and as a dad to my kids!
It’s always so interesting to get to read one of the devotionals from Manhood Journey and how they speak to men and especially dads.
As I consider the reality of the importance of being the dad God created me to be for my wife’s sake, my kids’ sake, and this world’s sake, living life as Jesus purposed to the full, more abundantly, and without regrets comes to mind. God created us for relationships! God created us to be in a relationship with Him, God created us to be in a relationship with our wives, God created us to be in a relationship with our kids, and God created us to be in a relationship with others! So let’s be the dads who choose to live connected lives so that by being connected with God we can allow God’s love, plan, and purpose to flow into us and through us into the lives of our wives, our kids, and our world!
So with my usual search for the word “dad” and scrolling through a couple of pages, today’s devotional is going to be “Becoming A Connected Father” from Manhood Journey!
Scripture from Today’s Devotional:
‘ Therefore encourage (admonish, exhort) one another and edify (strengthen and build up) one another, just as you are doing.’
1 Thessalonians 5:11
‘ And these words which I am commanding you this day shall be [first] in your [own] minds and hearts; [then] You shall whet and sharpen them so as to make them penetrate, and teach and impress them diligently upon the [minds and] hearts of your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up.’
Deuteronomy 6:6-7
Let’s be the dads who spend time in God’s Word so that when God speaks to us through His Holy Spirit we can identify His voice. Let’s be the dads who spend time with God so that we can hear Him and learn His voice. God’s Word never returns void! God’s promises are true! So let’s lean into it daily!
Let’s be the dads who are encouragers! Let’s be the dads who admonish and exhort our wives, kids, and others! Let’s be the dads who speak words that will edify our wives, kids, and others! Let’s be the dads who speak words that will strengthen our wives, kids, and others! Let’s be the dads who speak words that will build up our wives, kids, and others! Let’s be the dads who do it often and consistently! Let’s be the dads who allow God’s Word to fill us daily so that it is the first thing our minds and hearts do! Let’s be the dads who whet and sharpen our hearts and minds with God’s Word so that God’s Word saturates us and exudes us as we live out our lives! Let’s be the dads who whet and sharpen our hearts and minds with God’s Word so that God’s Word saturates us and exudes us as we pour into the lives of our wives, kids, and others! Let’s be the dads who are so full of God’s Word that we speak it, express it, and model it for our kids when we are sitting at home, walking through life, and everywhere in between! Let’s be the dads who are so full of God’s Word that we speak it, express it, and model it for our kids from when we wake up in the morning till we go to bed each evening!
Today’s devotional has been provided by UNCOMMEN.
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)
This reading plan is a summary of many of the things taught in the full digital course called The Connected Father filled with videos, podcasts and downloadable tips and tools.
Becoming a Connected Father
Manhood Journey is a ministry who helps dads become disciple makers. We do this through various tools: blogs, eBooks, Field Guides, Bible studies, digital courses and live events.
For more information, please visit https://www.manhoodjourney.org/connectedfather.
Takeaways from Today’s Devotionals:
“Day 5: Communication Strategy 2 “
- Communication Strategy 2: Listen Openly
- Let’s be the dads who are good listeners!
- Today’s devotional starts off with the reality that after picking up the strategy of being able to ask good questions we need to be able to be good recipients of the answers when it says:
- Let’s be the dads who prime the pump of conversation and communication with God, our wives, and our kids by asking great questions!
- Let’s be the dads who are ready to receive their response by actively and openly listening to their answer, so that God, our wives, and our kids know that what they have to say is important and matters!
- Let’s be the dads who are listening to understand rather than listening “just long enough to formulate a reply and then interrupt with our “answer” (even if they didn’t ask you a question!).“
- Let’s be the dads who continuously learn and grow by the grace of God including in the area of listening!
- Today’s devotional shares how “listening openly has three components”
- “1) Hearing their whole answer. If I could have a dime for every time I interrupted my wife or kids while they were talking, I’d be writing this eBook from my own private island.“
- “2) Putting their comment through my brain. I can process information pretty quickly. But, I still need to take a moment and let their comment “sink in”.“
- “3) Ensuring I heard them by repeating or clarifying. “So, if I heard you right, you want to punch your brother right in the face?”“
- Let’s be the dads who are great listeners rather than just preaching to our kids!
- Let’s be the dads who speak to ask questions rather than just to fill space or waste time!
- Let’s be the dads who are listening to understand without bringing any bias or judgment till we have the full understanding!
- Let’s be the dads who listen to understand rather than listen to respond!
- Let’s be the dads who listen to our wives to build common ground!
- Let’s be the dads who listen to our kids to build common ground!
- Let’s be the dads who listen to others to build common ground!
- Today’s devotional closes with this challenge:
