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June 30, 2015 7:09 pm
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Harvest messages are brought to you by harvest partners receive free email daily devotions or to become a harvest partner, please visit us online@harvest.org superhero Superman Kennett fronts everybody doesn't think I'm in the guise bullet proof he can fly. He can see through walls, etc. that I want to talk about a different kind of super hero or a super man is called dad and we need dads right now in our culture like never before. When I think that I don't just mean a biological father. I'm talking about a man who stands by the commitment he made to his wife and to his children a debt that raises his children to follow God and to be responsible, a man of father who was a godly role model and leader in the home and I'll tell you in our culture today. That is like a Superman known another time. This was expected of fathers, but in our upside down culture. So many fathers are missing in action in that single fact is what causes most social ills in America today. You can almost trace every problem in our culture today to the breakdown of the family, and specifically the lack of a father and some would say well it doesn't matter. You know if you get mad at the Boers that the kids are resilient and that they got mom there fine actually. That's just not true because here are just a few stats to consider in 1960 there were fewer than 6 million children are fewer than 6 million children lived in single-parent families today. One third of all American children at 15 million are being raised without a father and that number is only going up and hasn't leveled off and it's certainly not going down through history, minute been torn from their families by war, disease and death. But as we come now to the beginning of the 21st-century men are choosing to disconnect from their family on a massive scale. One expert said were in danger of becoming a fatherless society. Look at the impact it's had 63% of teenagers who attempt suicide from fatherless homes 71% of high school dropouts are from fatherless homes, fatherless children are anywhere from 100% to 200% more likely to have emotional and behavioral problems at all. The comfortable fatherless home is 60% more likely to use drugs or alcohol form are likely to become sexually active at an early age and three times more likely to commit a violent crime.
90% of all homeless and runaway children, 90% are from fatherless homes 85% of all youth sitting in prisons today grew up in a fatherless home fatherless sons are 300% more likely to become incarcerated juvenile institutions fatherless daughters who marry of a 92% higher divorce rate in fatherless sons are 35% more likely to experience marital failure. Fatherless daughters are 53% more likely to marry as teenagers listen to this fatherless daughters are 111% more likely to have children as teenagers in 164% more likely to have an out of wedlock birth.
80% of teenagers admitted to psychiatric hospitals come from fatherless homes. Don't tell me fathers don't matter. They matter a lot in an intact family matters a lot so you can see the dangers of the breakdown of the family. For those that would attack it.
For those that want to redefine it as a man in a manner as a woman and a woman joined together in marriage. This is an attack of the very foundation of our country because as I said before a family can survive without a nation but a nation cannot survive without the family and we need the family and we needed intact.
James Merritt, my friend made this statement, quote the most endangered species in America today.
Today is not the spotted owl for the snail daughter daughter but the responsible father and I would agree with that. So look, I'm not here to be fathers down because manicured dad and your current church and you're listening to my message right now. I applaud you back. Let's applaud every father in this room because you're going against the flow man you're not doing what so many other guys are doing just checking out and being so self-indulgent you're saying I'm to be a responsible father and I think God for you course of fathers day is upon us and it's interesting to look at the stats about church attendance on Mother's Day, church attendance goes up on Father's Day church attendance goes down. Why is that you know the kids come to my mom.
It's Mother's Day what he wanted to well I would like us all to go to church and afterwards we can go out for lunch.
Okemo data is Father's Day what you want to do. I want to stay home and sleep. Thank God for those fathers that are in church on Father's Day.
One boy said Father's Day is just like Mother's Day only. Don't spend as much on the get that pretty much sums it up and I bring this up because here we have now. The apostle Paul talking about how to have a successful family how to be good parents but look how easy rose and in particular on the fathers Ephesians 6 for you fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord and that's not to say this is not applicable to mother's.
This is true both. But I want you to note that Paul addresses his remarks in particular to fathers view fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. So this statement assumes from the get-go that there is a fatherless of father there in the home and he's doing his part and you know, a lot of times are kids. I notice a lot of pressure dads but is true in a lot of ways our kids will form their view of God the father based on their relationship with her earthly father and that means you need to do the best you can to represent our father in heaven, you're going to mess up your gonna fall short.
You can make mistakes.
We all do, but at the same time we have to understand that that we play a significant role in the lives of our sons and daughters and you know our kids. Maybe in the early years really have a lot of respect and admiration and as time goes by.
There's maybe a little bit of rebellion a little bit of difficulty, but they'll come back to it later. I'm reminded of a clipping. I read from a Dutch magazine, a number of years ago, our beloved Dutch magazines. No I don't but someone sent this to me. I like this basically child reflecting on their father. Over the years at four years old. The child says my daddy can do anything at seven years.
He says my daddy knows a lot a whole lot in eight years. He says my father doesn't know everything. At 12 years. He says oh well.
Naturally God doesn't know that either had 14 years. That is so old school. He just doesn't get it at 21 years.
That is so lame at 25 years. Dad knows a little bit about that is not that much at 30 years. He says let's find out what dad thinks about that 35 years, he says, before we decide let's get dads idea first had 50 years. He says what would dad have thought about that and it 60 years. He says my dad knew literally everything right in a full circle so fathers just need to hold their course and do their job. Another Mark Twain quote I hardly ever quote Mark Twain and podium twice in one message but I just love this quote Mark Twain's" when I was a boy of 14, my brother was so ignorant I can hardly stand to have the old man around when I got to be 21. I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years, yet it to the old man didn't change it is grew up. You understood a little bit more about his role again. Note that this is directed toward fathers is the what not to do that. He is told what to do and this is as I said applicable to moms to do so for all parents. And maybe your listing right now and years and while I'm not a parent will chances are you probably will be one day. So think about this now. This is a good time to prepare yourself. Don't provoke your children to wrath. What is any provoke means to anger that actually are actual definition of it is a repeated pattern of treatment that causes the child to have anger and resentment that boils over to outright hostility. So how would we provoke our children listen to this one way we provoke our children is through showing favoritism to one over the other. We say that again one way we provoke our children that is that that we cause resentment in them, or even anger is we show favoritism toward one child over another night you see this pattern in Scripture we remember the story of Jacob and Esau, Isaac clearly favored Esau, Rebecca, his wife favored his brother are yeah that's our favor.
Jacob, I should say right so Isaac favored Esau Rebecca favored Jacob in this turn the boys against each other and develop the sibling rivalry that literally lasted for the rest of their lives out after Jacob left home when he got married and had his own kids.
You think he of all people would have known the perils of favoritism. Yet, ironically, Jacob favored his son Joseph over all of his other Boise he would go to buy Joseph a special code that nobody else had. We heard of Joseph's coat of many colors as it's translated a multicolored coat actually what it really was, was a longsleeved tunic and the idea was all the other boys were dressed to work out in the fields and dad gave to Joseph, the equivalent of a of the suit.
Kind of like you don't have to work in the sun like your brothers, you could just hang out and personal.
Joseph probably flaunted a little bit and I have this guys and you don't. So one day the brothers go out the gun from the come back in. They decided to sell Joseph to slave traders. First they wanted to kill but then they decided to Solomon's debts of the come home and tell their father a lot when you know things are messed up when your boys sell their brother, but that's what happened. He showed favoritism and created this environment. This happened to David as well. King David. But before he was King David. He was shepherd boy David and remember that the prophet came to his town board. David lived Bethlehem. That's why Jesus was born about the camp because he was a of the root and offspring of David, so the prophet comes to town to anoint the next king over Israel and he comes to the home of a man named Jesse says bring all of your sons to be Jesse and son Jesse brings out his boys and they were good looking boys find striping handsome young men and one stood taller than all the rest, and the prophet looked at him and said surely that is the Lord's bed got said no, none of these are the men that I've chosen so the prophet says to Jesse do you have any other boys exist without technically yes there is one other. He's gonna wear dirty sing songs to God.
You know he's a musician. He ate you. I just bring them in and so David comes bounding into the house. The Bible said he had sort of reddish hair in it. He was different from all the other brothers and got said that's my man. And so the prophet anointed him to be the next king, but David was not loved by his father that David later wrote in the Psalms when your father and mother forsake you. The Lord will take you up in a listen to this. Those who are often not loved by parents become beloved of the Lord, and I never had a father growing up, my mom was married and divorced seven times and after about the third guy I got sick of calling them. Dad it just didn't feel right and so I just started calling them by their first names awarded a matter to be gone and someone else would take your place soon enough so I grew up in this void. In this document, I could've very easily been one of the statistics that I mentioned earlier, but thankfully when I came into a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. I found the father I'd never had my father in heaven who love me all that time and he loves you too God can break whatever cycle of sin there is in your family.
Maybe your grandparents are divorce and your parents were divorced anything on them to get the boards in the my kids are going to get divorced doesn't have to happen. Christ can break the cycle of sin in your life if you turn to him and obey his words, we did it for me. He can certainly do it for you, don't show favoritism.
By the way the kids know when you favor one over the other, you're not as clever as you think you are children of very perceptive and you know we are first granddaughter Stella was born and I just I always was buying toys for stolid dolls. Whatever you know just love to get stuff for her and then we have more granddaughters now we are four and a grandson and in my wife said no. When you buy a gift for a grandchild you have to get a gift for all the grandchildren saw be looking at a supercool dolomitic bentonite times at all times for get some smaller this time, which is the you want to be even in the way you deal with your children don't favor one over the other. Number two. Another way to provoke your children is by never complementing that never complementing that nice growing up as a kid I was never affirmed. No Adam boys came my way.
We never said I love you and my family. My mom certainly never said that to me. That is why the first time I went to church and total strangers are coming up to me thinks love your brother. I was a kid I was cringing because I'd not been raised in a world like that was very hard for me to express affection in so you know you can try to make your kids tough and strong, and you never complement them. You never affirm the much as criticism, criticism. That's an extreme you don't want to do that. I think because I was raised awake. I tended to overcompensate and will my first and Christopher was born I had told Tim and every way we would go out to toy stores for no apparent reason and I would buy big toys for him.
The drug drove my wife crazy and I think I overcompensated and wanted to give them too much. I think I over did it with discipline to argue with Dr. Dobson statement when he said every parent owes her first child, an apology. A child needs approval. They need to know you love the NLRB to be unconditional where they know that you love them no matter what no matter what, that's very important. That is a reflection of the father in heaven, but that we can swing too far the other way we can over praise our children. I think maybe this is more of a problem today. It's actually as a name for they call it helicopter parenting. The idea that the parents always hovering over the child and everything the child does his brilliant everything the child says everything is the best of the greatest, you know, and they have those bumper stickers on their car. Basically, my child is smarter than yours and it gives could do complement your children like this whole thing now with James that we don't keep score anymore because there's no winners and losers. Everyone's a winner. That's stupid how many agree with me, that's a life man, did you get a job in your to do a lousy job at work in the Boston similar to P I'm I'm good to know you actually used to get outta here. Your fire, and promoting this other person instead. That's real life. But the thing is is read an article from the Florida Sun Sentinel and the headline was when freezing children goes too far. It disparages to worry about spoiling their kids so they criticized lavishly and withheld praise.
Now they worry about self-esteem, so they withhold criticism while praising lavishly the problem is it's developed a narcissistic self centered culture. They called the baby boomers.
That's my generation, the me generation.
Now they call the millennial's the me me generation sink with the favor tenant photography today so please so you gotta find the balance of complementing them, but when necessary, critiquing them the ideas were trying to help the one we doing were bringing them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. That's what the Bible says the word bring them up means to nourish or feed another translation says let them be kindly cherished. Notice the wording, bring them up. It doesn't say knock them down. Our job is to bring our children up, nor does it say leave them to themselves because are told in Proverbs 2915 a child left to himself brings shame to his mother. That's a problem in our culture today. We have so many kids are left of themselves.
They call them latchkey kids currently do a U.S. Census one third of all school-age children in the United States, or for some part of the week. Latchkey kids are left to go home to an empty house or apartment.
The numbers between five and 7 million with children between the ages of five and 13 years old who's influencing these kid many cases their peers are certainly culture is the Internet is a lot of scary things you can be exposed to out there without supervision and think it's a good idea to if you have you no connection to the Internet that have that computer out in the room were your around. I don't get a good idea to give a child their own access to the Internet without any filters in the room they can get themselves into a lot of trouble.
I think we make too big deal. Big of a deal about the privacy of a child with my children. I said look you live under my roof.
You live by my rules.
Okay, I paid the bills and take care of you, but these are my rules and I reserve the right to look anywhere I want anytime I want all snoop through your room and you have nothing to say about sorry you made me think that's too harsh to look with her getting into something that could bring harm to the and this happens to our kids, their influence by peers are influenced by culture. It's the parents job to raise up the children look here at this church. We are here to assist you when you're here here in a message. Your children are being ministered to. Sometimes people get upset because they want to bring the very small children in the church with them only single take them to Sunday school. Don't you understand that for the sake of the child is much as it's for the sake of everybody because they're going to be in an environment where they are related to in a way that they can understand the word of God will be brought to them in a way that they can process it. So will do what we can, but ultimately the job of raising the child is not the job of the church. It's not the job of the pastor is not the job of the Sunday school teacher.
It's the job of the mother and it's a job of the father.
It's your job if my job we need to bring our children up. Why do we need to bring our children up because their sinful nature brings them down. Oh yes, your children have sinful natures. I think you probably knew that David said in Psalm 51 in sin did my mother conceive me and I never had to sit my boys down and teach them how to send to boys. Today I want to teach you how to sin against God� Start with this word mine. No, I did it just I'm amazed there so little that already starts coming out of them were just born that way. So my job as a Christian parent is to point them to Jesus.
Listen to this. I cannot take my child any further than I myself have gone see if I'm not working closely with Jesus.
I'm not going to do a very good job bringing my child closer to Jesus because some things are caught in some things are taught I can teach certain things, but in other situations they watch my example they watch how I react to situations they watch how I treat people. They watch how I treat their mother and they conveniently how they develop attitudes and begin to imitate that nothing can happen through us until this first happened to us. We say that again.
Nothing can happen through us until it is first happened to us. Paul said in Philippians 43 these things you learned and received and heard and seen in me practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you the balsamic you see me do it now.
You do it to.
And that's what we should be with our kids story of a father and a son. There were climbing a mountain that came to a pass on the road were climbing was very difficult and even dangerous in the father stopped to consider which way he ought to go and hurt his little boy Sabine M choose the good Dad I'm coming right behind you. When you think about that was choices we make in life. Our kids are following that in a follow in your footsteps like that old expression says all the apple didn't fall too far from the tree that it may idea that is the other just like there father or they're just like their mother.
So be a good example in that regard.
To be able to effectively do this. Needs means you need to take a lot of time with your kids. Let me just sort of dispel the myth of quality time. Okay, we have quality time to get caught for fiber quality time quality you know what your kids need quantity time.
They need lots of time. Listen to this. The best thing you can spend on your children is time to give them your time and they come to you and I want to ask you something. Whatever you're doing just stop and answer their questions enter into their world. Moses gives us some great insights into this, he says in Deuteronomy 64 these words, which I'm commanding you today, shall be on your heart and you will teach them diligently to your sons now listen to this, you should talk to them when you sit down in your house and when you walk by the way down when you rise. I think it's a great idea did before you put your kids to bed to read a Bible story you noted, pray with them but the only thought the only time your spiritual interaction. Look for those teaching moments that come through the day of Princess SNM senior kit you can't watch television say you can watch TV and I watch it with you like when it's good you know you can watch a program and maybe they don't understand the subliminal message has been communicated in the program and so you explain it to them and they didn't realize that you look for opportunities to help them process life to know how to bring the biblical worldview to bear because there's what's going to happen is your kids get older looking to become more independent and they're going to start pushing back in again to start asking questions and that's not a bad thing. That's a good thing. You want your child to think for themselves and you want these things that you hold dear to become their beliefs, not just because mom believes the more dad believes him, but because they themselves believe when David was on his deathbed he called his son Solomon. It was going to take over his kingdom.
Here's what he said Solomon my son, know the Lord God of your father have a relationship with him. That's it. They rethink sent what I want more than anything else is I want you to know the Lord as I've known the Lord don't live off my faith. Get your own faith and so we want to pass that on to our children and they may have their moments where they go a bit prodigal on you so let's understand what this persisting train up a child in the way that they should go. What is it mean it literally means it. Speaking of the actions of the midwife who, after delivering the child would tip her finger and crushed dates and then she would put her finger into the mouth of the baby that would cause the baby to want to sought and received milk so really another way to put this a train up would say develop a thirst in your child for God. Do everything you can to developing your child a thirst for God.
Have you ever noticed that when someone else is enjoying a meal you want some of it sometimes after church summons. They wanted gluttony and after church I used to do that a lot. By the way, when I was younger I had an awesome metabolism I burned everything a picture I showed you of myself. Earlier I could eat anything. I used to go out after church.
In the evening and every night I went to this place. You probably never heard of it before it's gone now. It was called Naugle's K is all some of you is a Mexican restaurant early good and then I think of the macho combo burrito. It was the size of a sleeping bag. I'm telling and I would got out. Sometimes I hate to admit this but I was at the end of my sermon.
I'm almost done ended.
Thinking about you, Rita. Macho combo burrito's compass, much of that by looking a macho combo breathe. I put on weight now. It also your metabolism changes, but I've been out with people you know after church than those they will get a burger and fries in the mall.
You are a no-no. I already ate general just drink water so your you know drinking your water and then the meal comes and you look at what your fries and your one fry.
What is it when it's someone else's fry, it's better noticed that stolen food is always better. I don't mean literally stealing but no my wife is preparing a meal should chop up everything the right amount of everything to put in it know what Brian takes a little bit delete that it's a balance thing for the field okay and she turned to when I take Borges. I did it taste better when it's stolen. So anyway you have the fry tip of your mom. Go ahead. Why is that that's the best malt you've ever tasted. So what you do you order your own. If you're walking with God as you want to, it'll create hunger in your child for God. Janet remember hearing Engram lots, the daughter of Billy Graham told Kathy and I how she would walk by her mother's room, a Ruth, her mom was one of the godless women I ever met. Just wonderful lady and it was just books piled on top of books.
Ruth was a great student of Scripture, she says sometimes I want planet see my mom and her knees praying and I would hear her brain and she said that made me want to know God like that & nothing. Ruth was posturing.
I think right. Ruth was just worshiping God and in it was carried on to her daughter and her other children as well. So create a first but get this phrase train up a child the way that they should go in first form also speaks of breaking a horse bringing a horse into submission. You know horses don't always do what we want them to do. II like horse power you I like to step on the pedal and I like a break that stops it from going but horses.
They have a mind of their own. Reminds of a preacher that had a horse if you heard the story we was your visit preacher so he was a spiritual man. So instead of seeing Judy. He thought it would be more spiritual to say, praise the Lord. So it's appraisal or the words of down below and only wanted the horse. It's a hallelujah work. Hallelujah, the horse stopped.
Praise the Lord of the horse, so when these are right around and horse get spooked by some insurgent running full steam toward the edge of a cliff, and the preachers like what is the work. Glory to God, the horse is still running. Thank you Jesus horse still running hallelujah horse stops little pebbles going over the side. Preacher month is praise the Lord to breaking a horse to put this together. You're putting constraints and motivation together. There's a parameters don't process line. These are the rules we live by. You have that but here's the motivation.
Look at the way that I live in develop this relationship with Jesus. And when you do that the rules won't matter that much anymore because you will want to do those things. But that's what our job is and here's another interesting thing thing about this train up a child is a word that is used many times in the Bible the word child was used to describe Joseph at age 17. It's also used to describe an infant as well as a young boy. It's also use later on. Describe an older man. So the point is you were to create a Thurston building that the child from infancy to adulthood. The experience of submission to God. That's the big picture of what we are there to train a child to do and notices is train a child in the way that he should go the way that he should go on the way you want them to go. You know you're not supposed to live vicariously through your kids live your own stink in life. Let your kids live their life and do the best you can to help them discover who they are and what God is made them to be.
As I said there not yours to be molded there there to be unfolded to help them become that person in the way that they should go to be better translated according to their bent. According to their bent.
The amplified Bible which is in the extended Greek translation puts it this way train up a child in the way that he should go.
That is in keeping with this individual gift or been when he is old he will not depart from it. Every child is different.
If you notice that every child is ever my oldest son, Christopher, Anna, tell them some tell him again, tell him again you disobey and he odds, I had to deal with that with Jonathan, his brother Tom one time it's done very different. So we have to deal with each child and then you see it in grandkids as well.
By the way grandchildren are the reward for the pain of parenting their strip.
How many of your grandparents raising.
It appears few of you out there.
I came across this to do list to do list for grandparents. I like this is your job, grandparents, and you pick up your grandkids, your to do list ready might write this down number one pick up children number two spoiled number three load them up with sugar number four. Send them home.
As kids get older they do push back so we want to do everything we can to raise them the right way to live a good foundation. You know, one of the greatest stories in the Bible is the story of the prodigal son. It's a story that Jesus told to show us what God the father is like any told the story of a father with two sons and one son said was father of a loosely paraphrased that I'm secure rules and regulations try to wait around for you to die. I want my portion of the inheritance. It's coming to me so dividers data and give it to me in the father. Amazingly, did with the son requested and gave him his portion of the inheritance Jesus as the boy went to a far country, and wasted all of his money on prodigal living so you know I probably have a lot of friends in you know and his brother later accused of being a bulb with prostitutes. We spent it on booze. He spent it on girls expended on pleasure and he ran out of money and before he knew what he was all alone affect he was beaten some guys kids which is a pretty uncultured thing for a good Jewish boy to do in one day he was so hungry he was thinking about eating the food. The pigs were eating and he said this is crazy. I was going to go home healthy data no longer worthy to be called your son. Just take me on as a hired hand.
I'll just work. Any job here, it's better than this. While he was a great way off. Jesus, the father saw him and the father ran to his son and threw his arms around him and kissed him and said welcome home son.
This my son was dead and is alive again.
He was lost is found, and they had a big party at the beautiful story that's a perfect picture of raising her own kids because even when the child is raised in a godly home they sometimes rebel meet some of the most notorious sinners are preachers kid's right to: PK Franklin Pratt. He was out of control.
He wanted to do everything this father, Billy Graham did not want him to do what his mom Ruth.
As I mentioned earlier, she kept praying for him when he came around and committed his life to Christ. But yet those prodigal years, even when raising godly homes.
Kids sometimes rebel.
I'm sure that this family that Jesus talked about when to synagogue on Sabbath end up. By the way, a statistic revealed a series of statistics revealed this every father mother should take the kids a churchwide study. So if you don't go to church for a month. The odds are almost to the one you won't go for more than a year of study once disclose that when mom and dad both attend church regularly, 71% of their children will remain faithful and attend this indivisible only dad attends church regularly 55% of the children will remain faithful. If only mom attends church regularly 15% of the children will remain faithful and indemnity how the influence of the father's important but if neither mom or dad attend regularly.
Only 6% or remain faithful to your example for your kids, so there was love and affection than the sum of this boy even though raised in a godly loving nurturing home on a straight point number two from the story we must stay true to our beliefs.
When you get pushback from your child should not back down. You should hold your ground and continue to love them, but never lose communication with the in our oldest son Christopher went through a time of rebellion and he actually told Levi Lesko who was a friend of Christopher's that he used me as a barometer.
He said I realize that my relationship with God was good.
My relationship with my father was good. Oh, my relationship with God was a word should be my relationship with the Lord wasn't where it should be. But despite that, even though there was tension. He always knew that I love to and never give up on and point number three. We should not give up on you know, sometimes your kids go really far in the wrong direction and you think them that this is over there, never coming back on the keep praying for them.
My mother was the ultimate prodigal child.
She was a prodigal for almost her entire life and didn't come back until the very end. So don't give up praying for your child may be restrained from your child right now and there's a lot of attention because they're living away that isn't the way you want them to live. Make sure they know that you love them but don't compromise your standards but keep communication open and always keep the door open because that prodigal son you can always go home and our kids need to know that to the can always go home and when the boy didn't go home. He was welcomed by his father that Christopher told Levi that it was my love for him.
That eventually brought him back because it was an unconditional love and he recommitted his life to the Lord and got married and had a beautiful daughter and was serving the Lord in a wonderful way. He was finally realizing this potential that we have always prayed for.
Always knew was there and for three years he walk with the Lord when he was unexpectedly called home to heaven and that we still miss him with all of our hearts, but I'm sure glad that he came back to the Lord before that, and I'm glad that I know I'll see him again in one when he was a little boy had Karen around my shoulders before he could really talk.
He would point at things and say sat, which was his way of saying, what's that should work on you point to a tree sat to treat Christopher or Tovar as we call them. It was his nickname sat at the burger sat that's a garbage truck sat that's a plane and always pointing sad sad curious little God he's been in heaven now seven years when I get up there, walk up to him and say sat at the throne of God that our second son Jonathan also went through a time of rebellion.
He too was a prodigal fat in a conversation with his older brother Christopher.
After Chris read recommitted his life to the Lord. Jonathan was struggling at that time in his life with drugs you produce. Testimony is not hidden, and the his brother turned to and said Jonathan would succumb to take for you to get right with God can take and Jonathan really wanted to have another conversation with his brother and it was the next day the Christopher died and God use that horrific event are two totally wake Jonathan up. Now Jonathan is serving the Lord, you know he's one of our interim pastors here at harvest. These married his three children is walking with God it make his brother so proud right now were proud of him as well. So don't give up on your kids. I know what it's like to have sleepless nights. Trust I could tell you stories but we never gave up and we kept praying and you need to do the same but you normally just going to turn around and lend this plan, we might have some prodigal parents are right now is some folks that while you're running from God. Maybe you were raised in the church and and you knew what was right but you run away from the Lord and maybe you're like the prodigal son, and you need to come home again. God would welcome you with open arms. Just as he welcomed the prodigal son in the story that we referenced but which you need to do is you need to come to your senses an adventurous center that's hard because there's pride involved. We don't like to admit. We blew it and we were wrong but you want to get right with God you have to say I've sinned and fallen short. But God will more than meet you halfway. Just as Jesus described the father running to his son. So will the heavenly father run to you and throw his arms around you and I mention I never had a father growing up. Let me correct that record slightly. I didn't have a biological father growing up but there was one man that stepped in my life for a very short period of time and treated me as a father should treat the son, and his name was Oskar Lori. That's right got my name Oscar from Lori from I don't know what my mom Sonia. She didn't need him in a bar. He was in the kinda guy.
My mom normally was attracted to. He was hard-working he was honest he was an attorney. He was a moral man and and I loved him and I called him dad was happy to call him dad and he adopted me me me his own son, and you know it that's what God is done for each of us that believe in Jesus Christ. The Bible says you have received a spirit of adoption, whereby you can cry Abba father and I was able to go back many years later and reconnect with Oscar after I became a Christian and lead him to Christ and he walk with the Lord for 15 years of his life and now he's in heaven with my son so God can work in these situations. Maybe you're running from God. Right now he will forgive you, you have to admit you're a sinner.
I'm not talking the parents are not talking about families, I'm just talking about you and God. This applies to every person listening to me right now.
Do you have this relationship with the father is a will. My dad was a lousy dad and I just can't relate to God as above. I'm sorry your father earthly father was a lousy dad but your heavenly father is an awesome dad and he unconditionally loves you.
And if you will ask him for his forgiveness. Just like in the story that Jesus told him throw his arms around you and kiss you a hug you say I love you and I'll say welcome home. If you've never put your faith in him you can do it now.
2000 years ago, Jesus Christ the son of God came to this earth and walked among us is a man that he went to a cross and died there for our sin he took upon himself all the wrongs that you and I have done and he rose again from the dead three days later.
Now he stands at the door of your life in the knots is as if you hear his voice and open the door. He will commit.
Would you like to West Jesus Christ into your life would you like your sin forgiven. Or maybe you've run from God.
You want to come back to him. You can do it right now were going to close in prayer and I'm a no extend an opportunity for you to get right with God atop our heads and pray father, thank you that you are a father that loves us no matter what. And you never give up on us in your love is unconditional. I prefer any person here any person listening or watching that does not get to know you, Lord, would you help them to see their need for Jesus Christ and help them to come to you now and believe and receive your forgive us, we commit these folks to you, Lord, in your name we ask this