Our devotion this week is focused on our relationship with our children as seen through the eyes of Christ. It has been an interesting ride as it has challenged my thinking, pushed my boundaries and made me analyze by behaviors.
- We’ve talked about how children’s behaviors are a outward expression of what is in their hearts,
- We’ve looked out what they see in us as fathers and if it points them to Christ.
- We’ve reviewed our need to be vulnerable and open to apologizing when we fall short.
Ultimately the question keeps returning to my mind of “What am I teaching my kids if I don’t show them how I struggle?” They never get to see how I lean on Christ each and every day; how He guides my steps when I don’t know which way to turn.
The passages keep returning to looking at how Christ emulates behavior for us, but the most impactful for me has been how Christ referred to God in the Lord’s Prayer. There He used the Hebrew word for “Daddy” which is Abba. Do I think of God that way or do I see him as a deity of protection and provision? Do I see Him as a father and guide and worthy of my investment in a true relationship or do I see Him as someone that I only talk to when I have a question, concern or problem.
Candidly, I think I am somewhere in between and if that is the case how am I demonstrating for my children how they should have a relationship with God on their own?
One thing is for sure, I am committed to making conscious decisions on how I present my faith to my children and to emulate for them how God truly is part of my daily life and thought process.
An Ordinary Methodist 