A Father Observed

I always underline passages that pop out at me at the time. For example, the fact that Christ is "the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being" (Heb 1:3) just blows my mind. I mean, how awesome is it that Christ is exactly like God, even though He's a dude like us "tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin" (Heb 4:15). Needless to say, I've underlined both of these passages.

I came across Ephesians 6:4 the other day and immediately underlined it. In hindsight it was an automatic reflex. What puzzled me was that I've read this passage a lot, passed over it time and time again, but this time was different. This time, I was a dad. I didn't want to exasperate my child. My goal was to make sure this child was brought up in the instruction of the Lord. My concern was not only to follow Scripture but to make sure that this was something I needed to do, that in every decision I will make for this child it would be for God's glory.

When I was about to be married, I read all kinds of passages about love and marriage. Some of them I underlined, but most of them I read and that was that. Then I actually got married, and all of the sudden those verses meant something to me. I was to be a husband who loved his wife as Christ loved the world, and it made sense. But passages about being a father made sense to me as soon as I found out I was going to be a dad. I didn't have to hold this child to grasp its importance, I didn't have to hear the child to understand its meaning, and I didn't have to see this child for me to love him. It just... happened.

It's almost like there was this "father switch" inside me that God just decided to flip on inside me. I've always trusted God's teachings, even when it's hard to do so. But God knew that I needed that switch to be flipped on at the right time, when (to be honest) I didn't have a clue how to raise a kid. I still don't entirely, but now I at least know that God wants me to make sure my child knows Him and understands Him.