We can’t be out there somewhere; we need to be the dads who are involved in the lives of our wives and kids. Let’s be the dads who are committed to our wives and kids’ success, growth, and support. Today, let’s roll up our sleeves and be hands on, not delegating our responsibilities but jumping in feet first to get it done!
To be involved:
You can follow the example of God the Father, who is always present and active in the lives of His children. He knows their needs, hears their prayers, and gives them good gifts. You can also be involved by teaching your children the ways of the Lord and leading them by example.
Some verses that illustrate this are:
Matthew 7:9-111: “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”
Ephesians 6:42: “Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.”
Deuteronomy 6:6-73: “These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”
To be committed:
You can show your love and loyalty to your wife and children, and provide for their physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. You can also honor your marriage vows and be faithful to your spouse.
Some verses that encourage this are:
1 Timothy 5:84: “Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”
Ephesians 5:25-285: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.”
Malachi 2:15-16: “Has not the one God made you? You belong to him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring. So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful to the wife of your youth. ‘The man who hates and divorces his wife,’ says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘does violence to the one he should protect,’ says the LORD Almighty. So be on your guard, and do not be unfaithful.”
To be hands on:
You can take an active role in caring for your children, helping them with their tasks, and spending quality time with them. You can also be a source of encouragement, correction, and discipline for them, as well as a model of humility, service, and generosity.
Some verses that suggest this are:
Psalms 127:3-5: “Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court.”
Proverbs 22:6: “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.”
Philippians 2:3-4: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”
Topic: ROLL UP YOUR SLEEVES
Verse: Colossians 3:23 (NIV)
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,
Firstly, let’s be the dads who are committed, involved, and hands on when it comes to our work. Moreover, let’s be the dads who don’t do things halfway but work at it with all of our hearts! Finally, let’s be the dads who are working for the Lord as our focus not just for human bosses.
Getting and staying involved as expressed through Today’s Devotional
Today’s Devotional with a subject about sleeves kicks off talking about different types of sleeves throughout history. Do you realize all these types of sleeves are how a lot of expressions come from? Today’s Devotional speaks about how the “expression “having something up his sleeve” refers to an Oriental-style hanging sleeve that was also used as a pocket.” Another expression that Today’s Devotional calls out is how “hardworking folks can be spotted by their rolled-up sleeves as they work to accomplish their tasks.”
Involved in hard work
Let’s be the dads who haven’t lost the idea of “working hard” be it on our marriages, raising our kids, or going to work to support and supply for our families. Today’s Devotional calls out how “spiritual work can be strenuous.” It points us to Paul who was a hard worker and how people who “working hard” has been lost on may receive “a stern correction.” Let’s be the dads who follow the example of Paul who “set an example of giving one’s all in service to God and also exhorted us to follow his example.”
Today’s Devotional points us back to scripture as it directs us to 1 Corinthians 15:58:
Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
Committed to finishing the good works God has prepared for us to do
Therefore, let’s be the dads who are “steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord“, doing our best and even more than is needed! Additionally, let’s be the dads who are “continually aware that our labor even to the point of exhaustion in the Lord is not futile nor wasted it is never without purpose.” Finally, let’s be the dads who get involved, stay committed, and roll-up our sleeves in order to be hands on and get the work done.
Today’s Devotional closes with a challenge:
“Today, figuratively, if not literally, roll up your sleeves for the Kingdom’s sake!”
Today’s Devotional
The reason some people do not recognize opportunity when they meet it is because it usually comes disguised as hard work.
UNKNOWN
