A Father In His Image

June is here and with it comes warm summer days and children exploring their freedom from school. With June also comes the day we sit aside to remember fathers. This is an opportunity for us all to think of the men who have shaped our lives and led us to be the adults that we are now. As I think back over childhood some of my fondest memories involve my dad teaching me and instructing me on how to be a gentleman, how to love and respect those around me, and how to demand respect in a loving way.
About five years ago my dad went with me to a funeral for a friend. Another friend, whom I hadn‟t seen in several years, came up to my dad and me. He told my dad that he appreciated him for the man he was while we were growing up and that he tries to use my dad as a model for how he raises his children. I know that testimony meant a lot to my dad and as I thought about it, I was truly blessed to have a father that cared for me so much. He always went out of his way to get to know my friends and to watch over them. He always made them feel like they were just as much his children as I was.
I remember losing my first friend in a car accident, 3 AM my dad woke me and after I heard the news he comforted me and reached out and helped me and all my friends to make it through this tragic accident. No matter how stubborn, hardheaded or rebellious I was, my dad was there standing beside me and ready to pick me up after my mistakes and forgive.
As I look at what kind of father I would like to be and think back on what kind of father I had, I can see that my Heavenly Father truly blessed me with a Godly man that mirrored the Heavenly Father in how he cared for me and my friends. How he was always willing to forgive and always ready to help when I asked for it. I pray that I may be all these things to my children and their friends, and that they may someday look back at me as I look back at my dad and say thank you Father for the father you gave me. May God bless all fathers this month.
MSW