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[0:00] Amen. It is good to be here. Good to see Sean and Hannah. As you hear, as well as everyone else. I really appreciated what Merlin shared and also John that you shared.

[0:19] I usually say I probably feel the most defeated in my life when it comes to fatherhood. I don't know why that. I don't know if that's all dads or if that's just some kind of phenomenon or paranoia or something I have. I don't know.

[0:42] But it's good to be reminded about our relationships and our responsibilities as fathers.

[0:54] I really appreciated that thought too, Merlin, about it's in the grind that many times we miss the mark.

[1:07] We, I thought, you know, we sing, sing that song. Some cause me to come to thy river, O Lord. It's been there.

[1:19] Cause me to drink. Been there and drank. It's good. It's good. It's good. The stirring, the renewal, the revival. All of that, kind of what Merlin was saying.

[1:32] But then we sing, cause me to live at thy river. And I've been there too. But I think where I fail is to consistently live there.

[1:47] It's not that I haven't tasted. It's not that I haven't drank. it's not that I haven't experienced not that I haven't you know done some of the big commitments and surrenders and all of those things like you say it's in the grind it's in the being faithful in the most little minute things that seem the least important but it's still important, it's important to God everything's important to God and that was really good, the other thought too I mean it was all good the other thought too is just that the Spirit's work is to abandon us to God that is, wow that is so powerful okay I want to look at I want to kind of end up with more of a message to fathers but I want to start maybe more of a message to parents, I was actually going to when I was preparing for these messages I didn't even think about it was Father's Day so I was going to start with this message and so then I

[3:00] I was like all of a sudden oh hey it's going to be Father's Day so I'll I decided I'll do this one this morning I just simply called it could be called other things but God's purpose for your home and again I you know I said in the beginning on Thursday night that there's I've been I just have a burden that that we that we allow God to restore church life home life married life just relationships all of that back to what God had had planned and and purposed in in the beginning for us and again I believe that before the coming of Christ I'll just say that again there is being a restoration there will be a further restoration of the things that are broken down and not what God wants them to be so what is what happy Father's Day

[4:12] I said that to most of you but not not all of you happy Father's Day I I thought too John what you shared however good or bad your father was or is you would not be here if it wasn't for a father there's just no other way God God didn't design in any other way but that you have if you're a living human being you had a father and so it's we can honor God and honor our fathers just our existence obviously starts with you know from our father heavenly father but then our earthly father and God planned it that way but what is God's purpose for us in our homes and so you know this is kind of this is more of a general thing but again at the end

[5:15] I want to be more specific to the fathers but this applies obviously to fathers and mothers and children God created us to reveal to the universe his own glory his own goodness and his own perfection and one of the one of the great ways that we do that is in our in our families in our homes and again one of the most outstanding characters of God is that God is love and the scripture brings that out and he revealed in all of his dealings with man God was continually trying to reveal the incredibleness and the awesomeness of his great love and God God has just planned I believe to as in our families and in our relationships in family life and also in church life in every relationship but

[6:25] I'm going to deal more with family life here God has wanted us to reveal and to mirror the awesome glory and the power of his love in our homes and again in the home through the love of husband and wife parents and children God wanted to reflect the love of the father's home in heaven I like to think of that at times how we are to mirror what's happening in heaven the character the love the glory the worship you know when we come together Sunday mornings to worship do you ever think about how are they worshiping in heaven and can we is there a sense that we can just think of that and mirror that and enter into that just with the thought of all of the glory and the majesty and the adoration that they're pouring on the father and the son and glory the angels the archangels the all of the heavenly hosts and sometimes we just sit here and we sing the songs and we're like wow they're good that's a good message but you know to really think about can I enter into the spirit and the sense of what's happening in heaven say in worship but think of that too in our in our homes in our relationships in home what is the relationship in heaven what is the what is the the love and the fellowship and the intimacy that is being shared in heaven in the eternal

[8:24] Godhead and I just believe there's a there's a sense that we're called to reflect that and to show that to the to the universe to the world that this is in a very small and obviously we know John already mentioned that we're we're all in perfect fathers none of us have perfect homes none of you came from a perfect home I don't care how good you thought it was and thank God for there are you know there are good but they're never perfect but in spite of that as we endeavor to to reveal and to show the glory and the the awesomeness of our God we can we can endeavor to as we work on things and and make effort to you know to reflect the glory and the goodness of God we can show in a measure imperfectly we can show in a measure the relationship the intimacy the beauty of the relationships in heaven and the the relationship of the eternal Godhead and all of the heavenly hosts we can just think of that we can do that in a measure as imperfect as it is here on this earth and what a what a calling I mean what a what an awesome thing that that that God wants us to do that and that that there's a measure that can be seen on earth through a godly family again our lives and relationships should be a mirror of the life the worship the glory of heaven and

[10:26] I just encourage us to consider that in in our as we go through yes I mean even like Merlin said even the daily grind of home life it's home life is kind of like church life there's always stuff to work on there's always stuff to deal with there's always situations that come up that are like what's this about where'd that come from why am I why do I have to deal with that and but think about that we we deal with it we work on it we we try to you know get through it in a way because we are here to mirror what's happening in heaven what's happening around the throne of God and so on so I want to look at I want to turn to Genesis chapter seven I in our culture we all know this we see the disintegration of the family all around us there we we just see a great breakdown of how many how many homes in America today are the father isn't even there and in the in the cities and in the countries in the country too in our little towns how many single mothers or divorced mothers or unmarried mothers or you know have had relations with men and have children and they're trying to trying to raise children and trying to somehow get by with children and there's not there's not a family relationship it is it is just rampant in our culture and it is bringing great destruction and just great havoc in America because of that but I want to read here I would just I just love this thought here in Genesis chapter seven this is the story of Noah and and I don't know you know I won't read the story here but we know the story how God told

[12:57] Noah to build an ark he wanted to keep a seed that through which the family could be preserved but also that the Messiah could come into the world the Savior and he says in verse one and the Lord said unto Noah come thou and all thy house into the ark for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation and then in in verse seven and Noah went in and his sons and his wife and his sons wives with him into the ark because of the waters of the flood and I guess that just that thought moved me and this is where I guess what I want to do is to encourage us as parents to rise up in faith believing in the will of

[14:02] God the power of God the the intent of God it is God's will that all of our family is safe and you know I know we have fear of this and that and whatever and and rightfully so but God told Noah you bring all of your family into the ark and I think I just see that it was God's will that not one of Noah's children were were a part of that flood and I know our children when they leave they home and they have their own lives they they make their own choices and so on but it is it is I just want to encourage us it's the will of God and we can pray in faith that all of our children at the end will be safe and I because that's what God wants I you know

[15:04] I mentioned last night how God God wants you to be safe God wants you to be in heaven this is God's will God has done everything possible that you make it there and God has God has the same will for every one of our offspring and I remember I remember when I was a boy raised in the Mennonite church in Ohio the deacon there was a guy named Elmer Elmer Gingrich I don't know James shaking his head and one of his one of his relatives told me that he was wow I can't remember now he was close to a hundred I think when he died do you remember what

[16:09] Luke told me he had he might have been over a hundred I don't know he was either in his upper 90s or low hundreds and he had he had a scat of children and he had he had multitudes of grandchildren and then that many more great grandchildren and I'm not sure if he didn't have great great I'm not sure but he he had and they he said the number like it was in the it was a hundred summer in the hundred and they they said up until right before he died he prayed for every one of them by name he was that sharp yet mental that he I mean I can't even sometimes I got 20 grand children sometimes I I'm like okay you know what what's their name I mean I I pretty much got it but you know how it gets but this this and I

[17:15] I was like wow what what faith did that old Mennonite preacher have and and what discipline did he have that in his mind he he made that a priority to to pray for every one of his offspring by name every day into his 90s as long as he had the mental capacity which I think they said was he did that up until maybe three months or so before he died that's church that takes faith parents that takes faith God wants us to have faith to believe him that he's he's able to save our children he's able to save our grandchildren and and and and however far that goes in Hebrews chapter 11 the Holy

[18:19] Spirit recorded this about about Noah and his faith in verse seven by faith Noah being warned of God of things not seen as yet moved with fear prepared an ark to the saving of his house by the which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith so again Moses built that ark because God warned him of what was going to happen and then by faith he he moved and he did that and he saved his house what sin destroys grace is able to restore that's just the beautiful truth of God's grace again we have we see a lot there's a lot of pressure on the on the

[19:23] Christian family and on families in general in our culture but what sin destroys faith restores God's grace restores God's grace points to the restoration of what he intended at creation and again if we by faith get a hold of God's grace our families can be what God intended them to be from creation they can be by grace and how do we access that grace it says in Romans simply by faith believing God God you this was your family was your idea and you you have made the provisions that we can have an arc of safety so to speak for our families and bring them in and bring all of our families into that all of our children God always gives grace in proportion to the responsibility he gives and I want to just say mothers and fathers parenting is a huge responsibility

[20:36] I'm I'm I'm just I'm looking at the this next generation and seeing all of the things that are coming in the world and in the culture and all of that and I can just gladly say I thank God I'm my grandpa I thank God that I've sailed that that ship has sailed and it's not going to sail again because I tell you what God you there is there is awesome responsibility on the parents I mean there's always been on parents but it seems to me like this generation this that we're living in now this culture the responsibility that is yours to raise a godly generation for the glory of God is

[21:38] I mean even from our standpoint looking you know having gone ahead of you and looking back it it looks it looks almost impossible to me I mean in a way if you just look at it from the natural and yet God is clear in his word where sin abounds grace does much more abound there is a way there is grace for whatever the responsibility is God will see you through God will help you God will be your partner in parenting God is the is our father which is in heaven he started fatherhood fatherhood all fatherhood came from God and so I think God is just longing for us to just to be humble like

[22:42] Merlin talked about humility and say yeah this is huge don't act like it isn't it is huge to raise children today I you know you just hear it all the time I hear it quite a bit that you know that there's why even have children the way things are in the world the way things are in America and I would just say why have children because God wants to reveal his glory and his power and his grace through families through families that have children and that endeavor to raise their children for the glory and the purpose of God so praise God there is there is grace there's an arc of safety God's desire is thou and all thy house and I just encourage you to to take even that phrase thou and all thy house is a phrase from God that he said to

[23:50] Noah but I believe I just felt God wants to say that this morning is saying that to us this morning and even as grandparents I believe that we can we can claim that parenting is very important to God again God is our father God instituted the family parenting is very important to God the scripture brings out the and again this applies to father and mother but I I think the greatest responsibility lies on the fathers God watches how we parent that that was just like a even this I had planned you know I kind of wrote rough wrote my notes down before

[24:54] I came but even this morning as I was writing this out a little more I just felt that from God God watches how we parent it is very important to God because again God wants us to mirror and reflect who he is to the world and if we take parenting lightly and carelessly or whatever we are showing to the world an aspect of fathering and parenting that is not consistent with who God is so God I just I just somehow I don't think I ever thought of that before but I just felt that this morning from the Lord God is watching how you raise your families that's it that's very important to him how do I know that in Genesis 18 you know we're familiar with this scripture what

[26:00] God said concerning Abraham and when I read that this morning I was just like wow God God is watching verse 17 and the Lord said shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do this is this is these men that these angels that came to to warn Abraham of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and a mighty nations and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him for I know God says I know in other words I've been watching I've been observing I know that he will command his children and his household after him and they shall keep the way of the

[27:00] Lord to do justice and judgment that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he has spoken to him so may we may we just really see the see that I also also want to read in Psalms 33 verse 18 and 19 behold the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him and it doesn't specifically say parenting here but God is watching God is looking God is observing do we fear him do we raise our children do we raise our families in the fear of the Lord God it's he says behold the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him upon them that hope in his mercy to deliver their soul from death and to keep them alive and found if you want to have just the just the blessing the spiritual blessing of

[28:08] God on your life there's many aspects to this but one aspect I believe is to take very serious how you train your children how you parent how your relationships with each other and how you how you have your family life again he watches our parenting because it is to reflect and reveal his character to our children and to the world now let's turn to Exodus chapter 2 I also want to look at this this thought about this story here about Moses just a just a challenge for me and just their again their pain I I guess yeah my heart is just that we have faith believe

[29:11] God trust God to work to work in us and to help us and to that we partner with him he's involved in our our lives personally in a very intimate way in this whole thing of our families and how we raise our families I think I'll start reading in verse 1 and there went a man in Exodus 2 there went a man of the house of Levi and he took to wife a daughter of Levi and the woman conceived and buried some and when she saw him that he was a goodly child she hid him three months and when she could not not longer hide him she took for him an ark of bulrushes and dauged it with slime and pitch and put the child therein and she laid in it the flags she laid it in the flags by the river's spring and his sister stood afar off to win what would be done to him and the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river and her maidens walked along by the river's side and when she saw the ark among the flags she sent her maid to fetch it and when she had opened it she saw the child and behold the babe wept and she had compassion on him and said this is one of the

[30:45] Hebrews children then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter shall I go and call thee a nurse of the Hebrew women that she may nurse the child for thee this is such a I know this is we know this story from child but it is so phenomenal how this how God orchestrated the faith the faith of a father a simple humble Jewish Hebrew father and mother and how God rewarded their faith and Pharaoh's daughter said to her go and the maid went and called the child's mother and Pharaoh's daughter said to her take this child away and nurse it for me and I will give thee wages and the woman took the child and nursed it not only did the mother have the opportunity to raise her son she even got paid for it so God works in such beautiful ways again let's turn to Hebrews 11 it mentions this in

[31:59] Hebrews 11 concerning they did this in faith and I see that I wrote the chapter down but it didn't write the verse down so I think I can find it here quick yeah verse 23 by faith Moses when he was born was hid three months of his parents because they saw he was a proper or that word in the Greek it means a beautiful he was beautiful to God it wasn't just like oh you cute you know just just a naturally cute little baby they saw something deeper they saw I think somehow by faith as they looked into the face of their little infant son I think somehow they seen God has something for this child God has a plan for this child they they seen what

[33:00] God was seeing in that son and and again that I looked up that Greek word this morning it means it says a proper child one of the meanings is beautiful to God God had his eye on that child God had a plan for that child God has his eye on your children God has a plan for your children and can we as parents by faith see beyond just who they are naturally but see into the will and into the purposes of God what he has planned for our children and because of that we take the necessary steps to raise them so they can fulfill the purposes of God that he has planned for them that God wants us to get a hold of that I know so much of parenting just you know is in the grind like

[34:05] Merlin said and it's just in the little things you know he you tell them don't touch that and they reach out and touch it any on you slap their hand and you're like why did they do that why don't they learn and you know whatever and sometimes that you know it's easy to just in the little responsibilities to that that we become blind to the bigger picture God has something for this child that's why I must discipline him because this child is for the glory and the purpose of God God this child is beautiful in the eyes of God and he has he's something he has a very specific way that he wants to use every one of your children in his kingdom and that should grip our hearts in the whole aspect of parenting and

[35:13] I think even as grandparents too I think I just see as a grandpa it's it's easy for us to lose sight of that and you know we're that responsibility is primarily on our children now and on their parents but I think as grandparents some of you how many are John James Dan Dan Dan and Dan you know we have a responsibility to to to to to have a vision we need even as grandparents in our generation we need to rise up and say God I want to see my grandchildren not just make it to heaven I want to see them fulfill your purpose for their lives what you have seen in them and determined them to be for all of eternity

[36:20] I want to behold that and I want to help shape that and make a way for that to flourish in their lives and come to a reality so I'm not sure if I even read all that verse but because they saw he was a proper child beautiful to God and they were not afraid of the king's commandment you know faith sees danger it's not oblivious to danger faith sees danger but it doesn't fear it makes Moses parents see there was a command of the king that all of the male children in Israel be killed and they knew that danger yet faith said we're going to make a way to protect them we're going to make an ark of safety to keep them in and

[37:21] I just love that thought as parents and grandparents we need a fresh transfusion of faith in training our children to meet the challenge of the day it was faith that saw the specialness and the potential in Moses they saw what God saw oh God help us to see help you young parents to see what God sees in your children it's just such a burden on my heart this morning it was faith that hid the child and saved his life faith does not fear again it sees danger but it does not fear our children are still exposed to the same danger the same verdict from Satan is that every one of your children be killed and destroyed in the night that's still the that that that's still the desire of

[38:24] Satan today for every one of our children and I think we need to see that and believe that that was so real to them and in you know that was a natural command but again we need to see by faith that that's still the intent of the Satan wanted to what was Satan after there in killing all of the Hebrew males he was after the Messiah he didn't care about those children it wasn't just to deprive the Jews of their children of their sons it was Satan knew that the Messiah would come and he would defeat the power of Satan eternally through the coming Messiah through Jesus Christ through the shedding of his blood and so on and the will of Satan again like I said last night the will of Satan is to deprive

[39:25] God what is rightfully his and what he purchased and ransomed with his own blood he wants to spiritually destroy our children so God is deprived of what God really wants and that is for all of us to be eternally with him and him and faith needs to not fear that verdict that Satan has that command of Satan that I believe that command has gone out to all of his evil hordes all of his demonic fallen angels and spirits to destroy the children of the Christians so God is deprived he's got the children of the world they're already in his hand and praise God they can be delivered they can be brought out of that but the children of the kingdom the children of

[40:29] God have a responsibility and a mandate from God to raise you have a mandate from God to raise your children for him and for his purpose and his Lord and Satan is opposed to that so this same verdict is still out there and we need to we need to confront it not in fear but in faith and say God by your help by your grace I have I abandoned myself like Merlin said I abandoned myself to you that the purposes of that your purposes can be realized in the children that you blessed the spirit parents need to see the importance of taking a positive proactive role in the spiritual life of your children and

[41:32] I want to just say thank God for godly churches where we work together in this but the primary responsibility for the spiritual welfare of your children is not the church it's the parents the church is there to facilitate to help to encourage you know we have a part two as a church together and praise God we can do it together we can do it in fellowship working together encouraging and correcting each other whatever is needed but the primary responsibility is not laid on the church it's on you parents to raise your children for the glory of God far too many Christian children or children raised in Christian homes are drowned in the Nile so to speak of this world lost in the stream of pleasures in the pursuit of wealth the children are sacrificed to worldly ambitions and social and cultural pressures we just somehow think because this is the culture we live in that we need to you know we need to somehow give in to things no we don't by faith we will not by faith we will not by faith we will build an ark by faith we'll make a little safe place to raise our families in let us stand up in the faith of the saints before us old testament saints

[43:18] I thought of Joshua this morning who said as for me and he said I don't know what you're going to do in my own words but he said as for me and for my house we will serve the Lord the faith of some of those old saints that they took a stand and said they they seen what God wanted and they they seen what God wanted to do and I think again that they were looking forward to Christ they seen how God wanted to save the world through Jesus Christ and they stood up and believed God for them and raised their families for the glory of God and we need to have that same faith it is faith it is faith that causes us to create a safe place and a path of safety for our children to walk in one thing that I

[44:24] I want to bless my dad for because he had somehow he had an aspect of this dad was he was just as imperfect as I am or I'm just as imperfect as he was but somehow dad had there was something in dad that he did whatever it took to try to protect us boys there were seven of us boys and we weren't no little saints growing up believe me we had one we each had a sister so there were seven of us boys we each had a sister kind of like the winger boys they each had a sister too so but anyhow somehow dad in all of his imperfections somehow dad knew that he had to somehow protect us and sometimes

[45:35] I thought I couldn't figure out why dad was so hard so mean I thought dad was just being me but I look back now and I tell you I don't know where I would be if dad had done what he did and made some of the decisions he did and what I see now looking back is dad trying to create a safe place to raise some rowdy boys and somehow by the grace of God as imperfect as we are as a family as sometimes even dysfunctional as we were as a family out of us seven boys five of us were ordained in the ministry and I had no idea how that happened we had a praying mother and a dad that was willing to make tough decisions to save his family

[46:43] I didn't get to go on all the camping trips and all the running around stuff that the guys I went to church with did and that their dads let them do and I just thought dad was being me but dad dad seems I think especially in me that I I couldn't have handled some of that and the bent I had for my own will and to do my own thing and dad did everything he could to make a heart a little heart for me to live in for and all of us and yeah I praise God for that I praise God for my earthly dad he died a few years ago just suddenly and

[47:46] I just I really awe things that he did that I never understood when I was a boy even some of you know most of you have done that I mean even taking us out of the church we were in and where all our friends were and so on because God seen something I mean my dad seen something there that long term that was not going to be good for the family and he made some tough hard decisions and again praise God praise God for my parents my mother is still living she still prays for us every day for too many children maybe I read that yeah okay the children have sacrificed to worldly ambitions and cause social and cultural pressures let's stand up

[48:48] I've read that by faith Moses was hid by his parents like Noah before them they made an ark for the saving of their son or their house by faith they trusted God to keep him Christian parents hide your children in the safest refuge there is the shadow of the almighty hide your children in the shadow of God keep your children close to God keep God close in your home to your own heart and in that sense you hide your children in the refuge of the almighty like it says there in psalms 91 our children are children of his covenant his kingdom hide them in the safety and the quietness of a loving caring home home life away from the excitements and the pleasures of the world they don't your children don't need to experience everything that the world has to offer they don't need every gadget they don't need every new toy you know it's maybe okay whatever but have have faith believe

[50:19] God for what he's determined and desired for your children and there's there's something in depriving them of everything they want that is part of that training and part of that their spiritual preparation we as we as adults it don't go ever it don't go the way we want it all the time we don't get everything we want there's part of the the Christian life is we deny ourselves we have to lay down our lives we have to surrender our will to the will of the father and just catering to children and giving them every little wish and desire whatever they grow up thinking that life is just us getting everything we want and then they face the real world it's not we're living for another kingdom we're living for something else it's okay it's okay to deny we have to deny self

[51:26] Merlin read that we have to take up our cross and follow we have to deny what we want for the better reality the greater reality and truth of what God hide them in the hiding place where the enemy cannot have free access to them you know there's a lot of stuff that we can bring into our homes that it might not look like what's the big deal of this or that might you know might just something seems innocent seems funny seems humorous makes us laugh I'm not saying there's no place for any of that but I want us to consider if you if you think about raising your children for the purpose of God the purpose that God has for families some of these innocent seeming things that are not necessarily blatantly wrong like in videos or movies or whatever is is it providing an access to the enemy in the heart of your children through foolishness through whatever and I just you know

[53:06] I just encourage us let's take serious some of these things because again God is watching how you parent and it has a direct impact on how he blesses you and how he's going to be able to use your life according to Abraham according to what we read there let your faith be strong believe that yours are the children of a peculiar people who are separated under God for his eternal purpose and glory the reward of faith of the faith of Moses parents can also be yours Moses was not only saved but he but he was used to save his people and deliver them you never know and I know back in Virginia and I think maybe I don't know if they still do or not but the ladies used to sing this song little song at a baby shower something about you never know who you have in the basket how does that song how does that go you don't know who they'll become yeah you don't know for sure some of your children some of the children sitting here

[54:39] God wants to be a David or a Mary or a Paul or whoever again we're raising them for God raising them for his purpose not just that we have a nice family we have a specific goal and purpose in mind and we notice that again by faith let your let faith hide your children in the ark of God's love let faith train them for God and his people to be a blessing to God's people then when the time comes to go out into the world they're kept safe by the power of God and his protection they will not only be under God's blessing but they will also be a blessing to others think of the potential that you have with these little children to be a blessing in the kingdom of God as they grow up what that that's exciting to see who they'll become again may we as a church be like a

[56:01] Moses mother was just the faithful nurse of the children that God entrusts to our care hiding them keeping them separate from the world and its influence and God will give a wonderful fulfillment of the promise which I read there that Pharaoh's daughter said take this child nurse it for me and I will give you wages God blesses families that that serious the raising of your children okay let me let me read a scripture that is specific to the fathers in closing here in Ephesians 6 verse 4 and ye fathers provoke not your children to wrath but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord the Amplified says but rear them tenderly in the training and the discipline and the counsel and the admonition of the Lord that is an imperative command to you fathers to each of the fathers here and you that are anticipating to be fathers take this responsibility very very carefully and in the fear of God we're as fathers and I and I know you know

[57:38] I'm I'm guilty of this very much when we had children I think probably Martha was very was a lot more proactive and active in teaching and training our children than I was and I it just really hit me when I read this and it says fathers and mothers have a place and they they have the hearts of the children and they have a they have an incredibly important and beautiful place in this too but it's it's it's like Paul through the Holy Spirit put that responsibility directly on fathers you do this fathers and I that just really I was like wow I I don't know how much I did that I I give most of the credit to where our children are at to Martha she was just such a she was just such a good mother and a godly mother to them teaching if you look up this word it's the communication of knowledge either secular or religious and we need we need to do both we need to teach them secular things as far as secular you know education and reading and writing and all of that but it's also in in religious things in spiritual things training is the development of the abilities both intellectual and moral which help the child do and be what has been taught again we can just teach without training we we need to teach and train training is more of a hands-on it's more of a heart-to-heart and it again it helps them develop the character into what we thought them to be so it's easy and I know I was

[59:43] I did this a lot as a father it's easy just to tell them what not to do and maybe what they should do and just just talk but the word of God says train them train them in the ways of the Lord train them in the things of the Lord developed abilities and so on in them and I think you know in a lot of ways I think we do this we do this very well in business things you know I see I see fathers here and their sons are coming right behind them they've been trained and that that's beautiful to see too they're trained in skills and so on but that's part of it that's very good but the spiritual aspect is the much greater another way another translation here is nurture them in the training of the

[60:53] Lord our children are the Lord's their whole education must be motivated by this thought that they're gods we must train them for him according to his will and in his spirit he has given in his word what our responsibility is we must look continually as fathers to his spirit to guide us and to sanctify us for the work that he has given us to do in nurturing and training our children the nurture of the Lord is to bring them up that they may be vessels equipped for the master's use prepared to do his will I just trust young fathers let let this burn in your heart that we're raising our sons we're raising our children to be vessels of the Lord that can be used for his glory and his purpose equipped for the master's use prepared to do his will develop self-control through love instruction and discipline we have a monumental task as fathers it's so easy to get down and discouraged but our heavenly father is there to be our helper and to provide plenteous grace

[62:08] I thought of that song plenteous grace with these found and God has plenteous grace to help us as fathers and then the thought come to me as he fathers us as the heavenly father fathers us I don't again I don't know that I ever thought of that before but that came to me this morning as I as I look up to my father and really see him as my father in heaven and I allow him to father me even as a grandpa God is so much bigger than me that I can let him father I need a father my dad passed away but God is there to keep fathering us he nurtures us and as we as he fathers us we can be a father to our children too and let them yeah just see them raised up for the glory of

[63:23] God I thought of this song I had it in my Bible and I just want to close with I'm sorry it wasn't so long I don't know where the time was but and some of you I'm sure many of you have heard this song but every time I hear it it just it speaks to me I got a call this morning I can't believe he's gone thought he'd be here forever but one more time time proved me wrong it was just a week ago thought I should call and say hello now I'm reminded once again life is a vapor in the wind love the people that God gives you they're a gift that heaven sent live and laugh and make some memories treasure every moment spent because none of us is here forever that's a proven fact love the people that

[64:27] God gives you because one day he'll want them back and I want to let that be something even for you children you're not always going to have your parents we've never had to bury one of our children brother Dan here has buried a wife some of you buried sisters and mothers let's let's do well and make a priority to do well to love the people that God gives us that's in the church it's in the family we didn't choose our children God chose them God gave them as a gift we didn't choose our siblings we didn't choose our parents in some ways maybe we can choose who we go to church with but see even in a church setting see that the people you worship with these are people God gave you and love them your children

[65:51]  God gave you them you might not have them again children you might not have your parents you're not going to have them forever and so let's let's love the people that John here says because someday God wants them back they're his children and I think one of the greatest the greatest of these is love love well as you raise your families as you work on your marriages as you work on your relationships in church life love well when we love well I tell you that's that's one of the highest things that we can do so God bless you and I've just really enjoyed being here this weekend and keep praying for you guys