By Pastor Anthony L. Scott
One of my treasured Father’s Day possessions is a bookmark I received from my two sons some years ago that on one side quotes Proverbs 17:6b (NASB), “ and the glory of sons is their fathers” along with Proverbs 20:6b-7 (NKJV), “but who can find a trustworthy man? A righteous man who walks in his integrity-How blessed are his sons after him”.
In Standing Tall, author Steve Farrar states, “A godly father is the unseen spiritual submarine who lurks below the surface of every activity of his child’s life.” A man, who has put on the full armor of God and with that armor, goes to warfare on his knees for his children, is a force to be reckoned with. While we cannot be with our children twenty-four hours a day, through prayers we have the ability to effect situations even when we are not physically present.
If one of Billy Graham’s tweets is true, “a good father is one of the most unsung, unpraised, unnoticed and yet one of the most valuable assets in our society”, where then are our father’s? How do we rediscover and reestablish our unique role as God fearing, Christ centered men. I believe father’s have a special role in three major contexts. The contexts of home, society, and church, and until these areas are once again filled by men all three will continue to crumble as evidenced by the foundations of all three increasingly becoming more unstable.
At the very beginning of creation, God proclaimed that it is not good for man to be alone, and through Adam He instituted the family as the center of human society. Throughout the history of cultures, the family has existed as a microcosm of society that has provided the soul of each nation and that was to be nourished and protected through fatherhood. Author Clayton Barbeau defines the essence of fatherhood in this way, “The notion of responsibility is at the crux of true fatherhood. The conscious sense of responsibility for the physical and spiritual well-being of others is the mark of a true father.” I passionately concur with others and believe that the soul of our nation is in crisis because men have abandoned their God-given role of fatherhood.
In large numbers, American men have walked out on their God-given charge to be the moral and spiritual leaders in their homes. This has led to the unthinkable morally and socially acceptable premise that men need not be involved with their families. The consequences are staggering. At least a third if not more of our children have no father to welcome them home at the time of birth. Only half of today’s children will be fortunate enough to grow up in a two-parent family and estimates are that American father’s give each of their children a mere three minutes of undivided attention each day. With these startling assessments of the state of fatherhood today, Edwin Louis Cole was right in labeling father absence as the “curse of the day.”
Society is subsequently affected by the absence of godly fathers. In the arena of education, the lack of a father’s presence greatly damages the self-esteem and confidence of sons. This is further compounded by the lack of male role models in the schools and a systemic insistence that little boys learn as if they were little girls and even have natural boy behaviors suppressed. Escalating crime rates can also be directly attributed to missing fathers. While sociologists, psychologists, and criminologists have varying studies and results on rising crime rates, the one common factor is the absence of a father. The plague of missing fathers has created an American male who is confused about his identity and under a great deal of psychological stress, which in turn leads him to lash out in frustration.
Unfortunately the Church has also been negatively impacted by father absence. The failure of our earthly fathers has caused our children and especially our young men to divorce themselves from our Heavenly Father. The negative feelings embraced by our children regarding fatherhood have had resounding spiritual ramifications. Weldon Hardenbrook says when we look at the Father; we do not see a passive, uninterested father who refuses to be involved. Not at all! We see one who loves, One whose affection publically bursts from heaven upon His Son, declaring, “You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mark 1:11, NKJV). Hardenbrook therefore concludes that what we need is A Call for Fathers with the Spirit of Elijah! “Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. And he will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the land with a curse. (Malachi 4:5-6, NASB). We need to regain the spirit of Elijah in our homes, society and church so that the greatest challenge of our day can be met, turning the hearts of fathers to their children so that, as the prophet promises, the hearts of the children will turn back toward fathers.
Finally, Michael A. Stevens asserts in his book, No More Excuses, “we must understand that God is after men’s heart. He does not want men just to come to church to please their wives and girlfriends. He wants men to seek Him with all authenticity.” He wants to win the hearts and minds of men back to His vision for our families, communities, and churches.
