Ken Lovelace Ministries


F a i t h M a t t e r s with Dr. Ken Lovelace Emphasis: Fatherly Advice A Little Fatherly Advice - Part 5 In an exercise of futility, I quickly listed 10 guys taken at random. As I looked over the list, 6 out of the 10 were men I'd classify as lazy; men who sit around a lot, who are not the first to volunteer when there's a job to be done; men who struggle not to be slothful. In our society, this has become a serious problem. Laziness is a quality we'd all do well to root out of our lives. Even more importantly, we bring glory to God when we model being hard workers. In this mini-series, I've been listing several areas in which fathers need to advise their children. Consider one more to complete our list of five areas. V. A Good Father Teaches Them The Value of Hard Work There are two very potent passages in Proverbs that underscore the importance and the value of hard work. "Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth. He who gathers crops in summer is a wise son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son" (Proverbs 10:4-5). The sluggard craves and gets nothing, but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied" (13:4). In a nutshell, hard work pays and pays-off. It is a grave mistake for us parents to give, give, and give to our children without allowing them to experience the value and reward of hard, diligent work. We can give them jobs around the house or help them find ways to earn money to help in the expenses of their education. Not only will that teach them discipline, but it will also help prepare them to live on their own. Conclusion All this is so commonsensical that we sometimes forget two important ingredients that must accompany lessons such as these: constant delight and consistent discipline. While our children are learning the difficult lessons of discipline, they desperately need to know that we care for them and delight in them so that they won't become discouraged. Remember, everyone, especially children, learns more through positive, loving encouragement than a constant cascade of corrections. Some first-graders were asked to draw a picture of God in their Sunday School class. Their finished products contained some interesting theology. One child depicted God in the form of a brightly colored rainbow. Another presented Him as an old man coming out of the clouds. An intense little boy drew God with a remarkable resemblance to Superman. The best snapshot came from a little girl. She said, "I didn't know what God looked like, so I just drew a picture of my daddy."1 Dads, when we live godly lives, our children will see God in us. Let us purpose to live faithfully before them and to teach them according to His Word. A little fatherly advice will go a long way in helping them to build godly lives of their own. _____________________ 1(Think, 100). Copyright © 2009. Faith Matters by Dr. Ken Lovelace. All rights reserved. KDT110909

F a i t h M a t t e r s
with Dr. Ken Lovelace
Emphasis: Fatherly Advice

A Little Fatherly Advice - Part 5

In an exercise of futility, I quickly listed 10 guys taken at random. As I looked over the list, 6 out of the 10 were men I'd classify as lazy; men who sit around a lot, who are not the first to volunteer when there's a job to be done; men who struggle not to be slothful. In our society, this has become a serious problem.

Laziness is a quality we'd all do well to root out of our lives. Even more importantly, we bring glory to God when we model being hard workers.

In this mini-series, I've been listing several areas in which fathers need to advise their children. Consider one more to complete our list of five areas.

V. A Good Father Teaches Them The Value of Hard Work

There are two very potent passages in Proverbs that underscore the importance and the value of hard work.

"Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth. He who gathers crops in summer is a wise son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son" (Proverbs 10:4-5).

The sluggard craves and gets nothing, but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied" (13:4).

In a nutshell, hard work pays and pays-off. It is a grave mistake for us parents to give, give, and give to our children without allowing them to experience the value and reward of hard, diligent work. We can give them jobs around the house or help them find ways to earn money to help in the expenses of their education. Not only will that teach them discipline, but it will also help prepare them to live on their own.

Conclusion

All this is so commonsensical that we sometimes forget two important ingredients that must accompany lessons such as these: constant delight and consistent discipline.

While our children are learning the difficult lessons of discipline, they desperately need to know that we care for them and delight in them so that they won't become discouraged. Remember, everyone, especially children, learns more through positive, loving encouragement than a constant cascade of corrections.

Some first-graders were asked to draw a picture of God in their Sunday School class. Their finished products contained some interesting theology. One child depicted God in the form of a brightly colored rainbow. Another presented Him as an old man coming out of the clouds. An intense little boy drew God with a remarkable resemblance to Superman. The best snapshot came from a little girl. She said, "I didn't know what God looked like, so I just drew a picture of my daddy."1

Dads, when we live godly lives, our children will see God in us. Let us purpose to live faithfully before them and to teach them according to His Word. A little fatherly advice will go a long way in helping them to build godly lives of their own.

_____________________
1(Think, 100).

Copyright © 2009. Faith Matters by Dr. Ken Lovelace. All rights reserved.

KDT110909