A Fathers Day Tribute

This blog is nothing short of just a few thoughts I've had lately through a few extra hours of down time after surgery. First of all I want all my family to know that each of you are so awesome and I love each of your different personalities and extraordinary traits you have. That statement comes from catching up on all the blogs lately. I missed reading them before the surgery because I was so busy trying to get as much done as I could not knowing how long I would be at home. I finally began to catch up a couple days ago and it was so fun and I can't tell you how much joy I receive when I read your "blog" journals. It's the next best thing Dad and I have to being there with you and how much it means to be able to see all your pictures and videos of everything you are doing. Most of all though I love to watch and read about each of you as you continue to develop relationships one with another. I am finally able to see and feel what it means to have an unconditional love and support of each other as brothers and sisters whether it's an inlaw or blood. Although I was given many blessings, a family with love and support was not one of them and so I want to thank you for giving me that complete and overwhelming feeling of joy through your love of each other. It truely is all a mother could ever ask for.


Now, enough of that....here is my tribute to all the Fathers in my life....my own father, my father in law, my husband as a father to my children, my sons and son in law as fathers to my grandchildren and of course my Heavenly Father.

Today in church we reflected on the different attributes of a father and one comment was made. "The first and most important responsibility of a father is to bring happiness and joy into your home." They didn't say your work or church calling which will change over the years, they said the first responsibility is to bring happiness and joy into your home.

Elder Richard L. Evans gave the proper dimension for all fathers when he said: “First of all, fathers are giving a name and a heritage to their children—clean and honorable. Fathers are for long, hard work, mostly their own kind of work; … for trying to give their children things [their] fathers never had. Fathers are for talking with, for encouraging, for putting arms around; for understanding mistakes, but not condoning them; for disciplining when needed, then loving all the more; for being strong and forceful, and for being tender and gentle.”

There is a cute primary song about Fathers which goes like this:
v1. The father of our home leads our family with wisdom's light in all that's right; My fathers good to me.
chorus: Father are so special with a very special love. They watch us and protect us. They guide us and direct us back to our home above.
v3. And now we'll sing great praise and reverently recall the Holy One who gave his Son, the Father of us all.

I feel it's such a blessing to really know there is a Father in heaven who knows us and loves us no matter what choices we make. Sometimes it seems as though it's so overwhelming, juggling a job, a church calling, your relationship with your family but we are given a chance to begin to understand what love really is when you become a parent. It is such a great teaching tool but also an opportunity to our obedience to our Father in Heaven that you will guide and protect and teach his children (your children) how to return and live with him. The question is...are we good enough for God to use as an instrument for His children? I loved this cute short story that was read today. I copied it and here it is:

The next time you feel like God can't use you, just remember...
Abraham was too old
Isaac was a daydreamer
Jacob was a liar
Leah was ugly
Joseph was abused
Moses had a stuttering problem
Sampson had long hair and was a womanizer
Rahab was a prostitute
Timothy was too young
David had an affair and was a murderer
Jonah ran from God
Naomi was a widow
Job went bankrupt
John the Baptist ate bugs
Peter denied Christ
The diciples fell asleep while praying
Martha worried about everything
The Samaritan woman was divorced
Zacaheus was too small...
AND Lazarus was dead!

No excuses, God can use YOU!

Where are the answers to how we can do it? If we just remember through the example of Christ and follow in his footsteps who never forgot as it reads in John 8:29 ‘For I do always those things that please him’ we will have all the answers.

HAPPY FATHERS DAY