Some assembly required. These words show up at the most inopportune times. Whether it is Christmas eve or in the middle of a project, something you anticipated being able to pull out of the box and use was not so straight forward. Frustration, even exasperation can begin to build and throw a wrench into the works.
If I had not been in a hurry, thanks to waiting until the last minute to get the project started, I may not have assumed no assembly would be required. There might have been an opportunity to show patience, read the instructions and engage the kids in a fun project. Hindsight is always 20/20. Patience with training and instruction improves foresight.
Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. – Ephesians 6:4. You are in the fifth week of the Pentecost challenge. Congratulations – you are over half way through the journey! This week we put a wrap on 2Corinthians and have moved through Galatians and Ephesians. I found it fascinating that Paul spent three years in Arabia and Damascus, then 14 years in the regions of Syria and Cilicia, all before the ministry we are familiar with through his letters. This was training and instruction that provided the clarity Paul noted in Galatians 2:20 – “I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” He shared messages of adoption as sons (Gal.4:5), walking by the Spirit (5:16) and the fruit of the Spirit (5:22). He said, God made us alive with the Messiah … You are saved by grace! (Eph.2:4-5). Paul introduces a lot of training and instruction – No longer walk as the Gentiles walk, … Do not let the sun go down on your anger (4:17, 26); Don’t get drunk on wine but be filled with the Holy Spirit … Love your wife as Christ loved the church (5:18, 25). And he gave instructions on how to put on the full armor of God (6:11-18). He challenged us to have the same mindset as Christ (Phil.2:5-11) and to live with boldness because our citizenship is in Heaven (3:20). In this passage, Paul addresses fathers because dads are to be the spiritual leaders in the home. When dads lead spiritually, 93% of the time, kids will stay in the faith as adults. It can be a challenge to not exasperate your children. When a dad allows outside influences to frustrate, distract and deceive, exasperation can result. One of the devil’s best schemes is get a dad upset about something that he then brings into the home. It takes prayer and a discerning mind to rebuke those schemes. To bring them up means more than going to church. It is praying with, for and over the kids. It is reading Scripture and having spiritual discussions as a family between Sundays. And in the training and instruction of the Lord the call is for training under the authority of the word of God and instruction reflecting the absolute truth the word offers.
Reading the word of God is training and instruction for raising a godly generation – Enjoy the Pentecost challenge and father with foresight embracing every opportunity to Train and Instruct.
Prayer guide: Father, thank You for Your word and Your servant Paul. I confess that too often hindsight has shown light on what should have been done. I stumble as the father You expect me to be and regret a missed opportunity with the kids. Forgive me. Help me move forward with a discerning mind that rebukes the devil’s scheme to frustrate, distract and deceive to the point of exasperation. Guide me through this Pentecost challenge and equip me to bring my children up in the training and instruction of You. That is the dad You call me to be, and that is the dad my kids need to see. Amen.
A faithful father fathers with foresight under the training and instruction of the Lord.
