Family News and Notes
GOOD NEWS! We have a new brother in Christ and a new Sister in Christ. Last Sunday afternoon, Hayden Fox (son of Jimmy Jay Fox), was baptized. And, last Sunday evening after services, Joy Cooper was baptized. Please extend your warm welcome to these two new Christians.
Thanks to Veleta McFerrin and Bob & Rhonda Hedges for coordinating the food for SYBSNET last Monday evening. Also, thanks to everyone else who helped to make that evening a great success. We had 126 present for a great lesson from Sam Dilbeck.
Next Monday evening (June 19) we meet at Blodgett. We will leave the building at 6:30 PM.
The McCains will be gone this week, with several young people, to Bible Camp in Alabama.
There will be a Youth Devotional tonight, after services, here at the building. See Wayne or Ann for more info.
Bud Roach is home again following his recent surgery. He will be undergoing therapy.
Jody Sparks had hip replacement surgery on Thursday in Tyler. He is in Room 20 at the Tyler Spine & Joint Hospital. (The old Montgomery Ward Building) He will be there several days and then return home for rehab.
Elna O'Neal is still very sick. She went to Dallas this week and saw her doctor on Thursday. She was scheduled to see him again on Friday and hopes to be back at home this weekend. She has been staying with her daughter. Please remember her in your prayers.
Pam Farmer says she is feeling better. She visits her doctor on Tuesday to determine whether surgery will be necessary or not. If you recall she fell and broke her right arm in 2 places (below the elbow). She will be there in Spring for a few more weeks. Keep her in your prayers.
Deborah and Meghan Biesemeyer moved to Mabank last Tuesday. Keep Deborah and Meghan in your prayers.
R. C. Grissom has been very ill at home this past week, with stomach trouble. He is feeling a little better but says he has a way to go yet to wellness.
Juanita DuBose (Judy's mother) was admitted to Good Shepherd Hospital in Longview last week with stomach pains. She was diagnosed with a virus and stayed a few days. She was able to return home on Saturday. .
Allison Chalk (wife of a friend of Rhodney Freeman) is seriously ill in New Mexico. She has back and neck deterioration and vocal cord damage. Her husband is caring for her at home.
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PRAYER LIST:
Justin Barker, Rachel Barker, Jean Bell, Deborah Biesemeyer, Winell Blackard,
Annah Brown, Nancy Chastain, Perry Cooper, Hollis Lee, Joyce Lee, Georgia Lide, Courtney Marshall, Elna O'Neal, Wayne Pickrel, Marie Plemmons, Johnny Ramsey, Bud Roach, Helen Roper, Dorothy Sargent, Alva Mae Sheets, Edith Shiflet,
Ola Mae Simpson, Jody Sparks, Julia Terrell, Rebecca Tippitt, LaShedra Traylor
ALSO: Wanda Abbey Rivera, Melba Boyd, Cristell Cato, Allison Chalk,
Austin Cody, Juanita DuBose, Wesley DuBose, Horace George, Edna Graves,
R. C. Grissom, Ruby Jeffery, Wayne Lineberger, Lonita Thompson
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A Loving Christian Father
Several years ago, an excellent article on "parenting," appeared in the Reader's Digest, entitled, "What Kids Need Most From Their Dads." The author, Ralph Bennett, referred to research done among successful American families which determined that traditional moral values" and "unconditional love" are the two most important ingredients for successful parenting and a happy home. Then, from his own research, Bennett compiled a list of four things, which kids need most from their dads:
(1.)A dad who shows his love for his kids,
(2.)A dad who will spend time with his kids,
(3.)A dad who can see the world through a child's eyes,
(4.)A dad who will set limits.
Reading Mr. Bennett's article, reminded of my own father, who gave me all the things I needed most as a kid! I never had to wonder whether or not Dad loved me, because he was not ashamed to tell me so quite often. More importantly, he "showed his love" by the kind way he treated me, and by his loving provision for our family. He certainly practiced the admonition of the apostle John, who penned,
"My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth" (I John 3:18).
Like most fathers, my dad was a busy man. His job as a chemical engineer, and his work as a deacon, then later as an elder in the Lord's church, took up most of his time. However, no matter how tired or busy he was, he nearly always found time (or "made time") for me and my two brothers. Maybe it was the "quality" rather than the "quantity" of time, but I cherish the memories of building model airplanes together, of many fishing trips, of his being there for our ball games, and of one special Saturday when we bicycled to a park then spent the day exploring the secrets of the forest.
Bennett's advice of, "seeing the world through a child's eyes," reminded me of a day when I was five years old. A large apple tree in our backyard had died, and I overheard Dad talking about needing to cut it down. Well, while Dad was at work, I went out to play in the backyard, and unbeknownst to my mother, I got Dad's little hatchet from the tool shed, and went to work on that old apple tree. By the time Dad got home from work, I had succeeded only in chopping off one very large limb, but boy was I ever proud of my work! Of course, removing that limb had not helped him at all in cutting down the tree, but Dad took the time to see my effort through a child's eyes. His exclamation at the sight of my work is indelibly etched on my memory as the most treasured compliment I've ever received. Seeing that severed limb through my eyes, he saw an act of unselfish love and paid me for my work a hundred times over by simply saying, "Why, you little beaver!"
Finally, I remember the well-defined limits in our home that were set and enforced by dad. We were taught to live by the moral code of the Bible. Right and wrong were black and white. There were very few gray areas, so when I stepped over the line, I knew a "whipping" awaited me at day's end.
My father firmly believed the wise man's counsel:
"Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying" (Proverbs 19:18).
I always thought Dad was kidding when he said, "this is going to hurt me more than you," until I got kids of my own, and learned he was telling the bitter truth. Despite what some "bleeding hearts" think, never once did my dad abuse me. Though my bottom often ached from his spankings, I know his discipline was administered in love for my own good. As Bennett pointed out, children find security in well defined limits and loving discipline. Seldom do they look back with resentment on parents, who, "dared to discipline."
Really, as I reflect on Mr. Bennett's article, there's just one thing lacking from his list of, "What kids need most from their dads." God's Word insists the following:
Kids need a dad who is a faithful Christian!
Kids need a father who is the spiritual leader of his family, and who will show by his example what Christian living is all about. I never had to worry about my dad coming home drunk, or beating my mother, or losing his paycheck to gambling, because as a Christian, he didn't do such things. I didn't have to guess at what Christian living was all about, because I saw it in action in the daily lives of both my father and my mother. In fact, I'm convinced the greatest gift parents can give their children is the example of a faithful Christian life, because, you see, Bennett's entire list is incorporated in God's standards of "faithful Christian living."
My dad passed away eight summers ago, just one day after his 80th birthday. I preached his funeral a few days later, then buried him beside my mother, who had passed away just eight weeks earlier. I miss them both very much, however, I trust I'll see them again in eternity, for both of them were faithful Christians.
Fathers, what kind of a dad are you? Are you giving your children everything they need to grow up to be good citizens and faithful Christians? How will they remember you? Are you living by the apostle Paul's admonition: "Provoke not your children to wrath, but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord" (Ephesians 6:4). I hope you'll think seriously about it, then determine to be the best "loving Christian father" you can be. Oh, and by the way, here's hoping you have a very Happy Father's Day !
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