Fathers' Day 2017 reflections

Greetings to my loyal blog readers as well as to those who are stumbling across my blog or this post for the first time. Today I am particularly motivated to post because of receiving encouragement both from secular readings and a sermon to embrace who I am and to share. Today's post is a reflection that also celebrates fathers and encourages fathers to embrace and share their emotions and even the emotional challenges they face as they father in the 21st century.

Going to church on June 17, 2017 with my children was indeed an emotional experience, as I woke up with the accuser of brethren attacking me for my fertility and trying to persuade me to sterilize. My economic and career struggles were raised before me, and the only defense I had was that one day I would see the fruit of all the struggles, and if not in this life, in the life to come. The accuser of the brethren then attacked my faith by telling me that Jesus has not returned yet and that he even declared that some of his disciples would not taste death until he returned (Matthew 16:28). This, the accuser said, did not come to pass as all the known disciples of Jesus at the time have perished and the world has gone on since. In fact, the accuser then said, by the scriptures, God said we know if a prophet is true if what he foretells comes to pass (Deuteronomy 18:22). This would then make Jesus a false prophet. In silence, I endured the accuser's torment with my only defense being that I did not know what was referred to when Jesus said he would come into his kingdom in that verse.

When I arrived, after taking my four children on the bus, I thought to myself how the culture and era discouraged parents from having children and rather encouraged them to focus on their careers or vocation. Society speaks saying that  "Thou shalt have children but only if you have 2 and no more and only if you have the resources and career to support them. Anything outside of this is forbidden." Further, society invokes another law that "Thous shalt use intrusive technologies and man-made devices to curtail your fertility so that you can dive down into your career and supply your family with abundant material things and meet their economic wants".

Twenty-first century's culture encourages men and fathers to give more to their jobs than they do to their families. Especially in Jamaican culture, where even the place where I work does not have paternity leave. But as I meditate on the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures, I realize that God wants me as a father to play more than just an economic role. God wants me to play a teaching and educational role, supplying my children with home education and traditions where I transmit my values, knowledge, and experiences to them. A case in point is Solomon, who I feel had a lot of his wisdom coming from what his father, David, passed on to him and not just from his answered prayer. When I read the book of Proverbs I hear Solomon telling me to pay careful attention to fatherly instruction (Proverbs 1:8). Which I somehow feel that it is David's instruction to Solomon that guided him in making early decisions (1 Kings 2) before the wise decision to ask God for wisdom later on (1 Kings 3).

As I listened to the sermon, Elder Cameron Munro, who served as God's mouthpiece, got me to reflect on instances where Jesus stated and expressed how he felt. The message to me was clear. Be real about my predicament. It is okay for me as a father and a man to state how I feel. There are times and seasons for me as a father to be emotional, cry, embrace my children and communicate my emotions to them. Jesus did this and modeled this for us. He wept and expressed his emotions. He even told people when he was thirsty and needed a drink (despite participating in the creation, according to Colossians 1:15-16, and being able to work miracles including turning water into wine). Imagine, Jesus the miracle worker, made his need for water known to human beings? 

Elder Munro stated that Jesus put on humanity so that we do not have to put on pretense. We don't always, as men or fathers, need to pretend that we are tough and that we have everything under control. But we can be honest when we are going through difficulties and share this with others around us including our children.

Reasons why God permits the existence of trouble and calamity

In a previous blog post (Does God really help those who help themselves?), I discussed some of the sources of trouble and calamity. I want to follow-up on this subject by discussing in this post some of the main reasons why I perceive God permits and allows human beings to have troubles and sorrows.

First of all, it must be acknowledged that God permits suffering and troubles to affect both believers and unbelievers. Neither of the two groups may be exempt from suffering. However, both find themselves in difficult situations for distinct purposes.

For unbelievers, God permits them to have trouble in order to give them an occasion to encounter him. This comes out in Psalm 107's story of the rich merchants at sea. While the merchants set off on the sea to do business, God sends a storm to turn their trip into one where they lose themselves with fear (Psalm 107: 23-30). While it might seem in this case, that God gave them a wild amusement ride on the sea for the LULZ or to get a good laugh, in truth, the apparent motive in this story for God taking the merchants on a wild roller-coaster sea ride is for the purpose of introducing these rich and powerful merchants to their human limitations and inability to help themselves. This indeed allows one to recognise the need to believe and trust in God when one has no other source of help. Hence, unbelievers have trouble and sorrows as a megaphone to announce their need for a Saviour or Messiah.

But trouble does not stop there. Even when unbelievers become believers, they still face trouble. It is not sufficient to believe in God for all your troubles and woes to cease. Even those who believe in God still need and are faced with troubles.


For believers, the main reasons why we have trouble and sorrow are:

1. So that we won't forget God. We can forget God if our lives are too comfortable. (Deut. 8:11-14; Proverbs 30:9). When we have all that we want to eat and have nice homes to live in and much stuff and possessions, it is easy to think we have it all. Hence, from time to time, God has to send trouble to remind us that we must not take all that we have for granted.
2. So that he can prove if we truly believe in him. God gets glory out of us passing various tests of our faith. Our faith tried and tested prove that we are genuine (1 Peter 1:7). According to Apostle Paul, we are on display to the universe/multiverse (1 Corinthians 4:9). Earth is a laboratory that is being used to not only test us, but to reveal to other inhabitants of the universe/multiverse God's character and laws. We are being watched by other beings [angels and the different classes of angels] for our faith and how we respond to God as agents created with free will to settle a controversial matter about God (1 Peter 1:12). The story of Job also proves this (Job 1). In that story, God boasts to Satan about his servant Job. Satan therefore challenges God to a bet that Job is only serving God because God has been good to him. Hence, God takes the bet and let Satan bring trouble and calamities on Job so that he can prove to Satan that Job is a genuine believer and righteous man.

Hence, we are to count it joy when we have temptations, for as Jesus says, temptations must come (Matthew 18:7). As they say, 'you can't have a testimony without a test'. Just make sure that you trust in God so that you can past the test.

Valuing Wisdom, Understanding and Knowledge

I needed inspiration and encouragement from God in light of the impending economic woes that are to hit Jamaicans in 2010. So I opened my Bible and came to Proverbs 24. I will now share the verses that spoke to me in a special way.

Through wisdom is an house builded; and by understanding it is established: (Proverbs 24:3, KJV)

I believe the term "house" here refers to family or household. These times call for me to get wisdom and understanding especially as it relates to raising my family. Wisdom and understanding are the only things that can help someone starting a family survive and be prosperous despite today's difficulties.

It is important that those intending to start and raise families are willing to conduct research and desire to learn. To adopt a learning frame of mind, where one is always seeking information and reflecting on experience and the experience of others are important in helping to ensure that one builds a good, strong and united family unit. Yet, research and desire to learn how to raise a family should not be based on man's theories, but rather based on a search in the Word of G-d for insights into raising a family. Insights about how to relate to people are best studied and extracted from God's word which in turn can inform our experiences and practice.

People principles are most import today in management studies. God's revelation of people principles are far better than man's so called science of people principles and people development principles. After all, God is the manufacturer, while man is the the imitator. In fact, man's science is only the attempt to understand God's laws and principles. We study the causes and effects, while God is the one who created the very laws of cause and effect, and can change them if he wills.


One of the most important trait in order to be successful today (I believe), is the trait of nurturing and developing other people. This quality is demanded for today's leaders of any human organization. It is the trait required to build and manage teams and improve any organisation's performance. It is also a trait required for the expanded service industry, which has currently overtaken manufacturing and agricultural industries.


In checking the Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary, I discovered house too can also mean a geographic territory or a nation (Vine et al. 118). Thus, those who need to build a nation or to ensure that the nation is on a path of development, will also need to place a high value on wisdom and understanding.

And by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches. (Proverbs 24:4)

The word of God confirms the value of being a knowledge worker. It shows that a knowledge worker will cash in and prosper from their knowledge. This is true not only for the individual, but also for nationhood. The economic development of nations requires the application of knowledge and the work of knowledge workers.

A wise man is strong, yea, a man of knowledge increaseth strength. (Proverbs 24:5)

Strength in these times comes from being wise. Wisdom in the Biblical chapter of Proverbs can be understood from the parables of insects such as the parable of the ant found in Proverbs 6:6-9. Essentially, the ants in the parable work to store food for winter, making use of opportunities all year long to preserve their survival in times of hardship.

Patricia Nordman puts it this way:

"Sometimes we have to forego, or sacrifice, a pleasure today so we can realize a goal tomorrow." (par. 3)

The knowledge worker will also increase his strength by working steadily throughout the year and seizing various opportunities to prepare himself for future possibilities or eventualities. Through research, continuous learning, and other personal and professional development initiatives, the knowledge worker will build upon his competencies, abilities and skills, so that he can be of greater value in society and economy, thereby attracting more value and economic rewards.

In fact, I just read this week a great article by Peter Drucker in the Harvard Business Review that declares:

"Success in knowledge economy comes to those who know themselves - their strengths, their values, and how they best perform"(32).

Finally, I examined a verse that really admonished me:

"If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small." (Proverbs 24:10, KJV)

Through wisdom, knowledge and understanding, we take actions today and prepare for future possibilities and problems. Then when the situations do arise, we are prepared to face these challenges, because we have been preparing for them and have been developing the character and mindset to face them.

Those who faint during adversity are the unprepared. Hence their character and strength to face the situation is weak. Survival though depends on the desire not to learn from what is taking place and use it to make you better for the future.

I thank God that he is helping me to build character so that in times of adversity, I will be strong and prepared. May you too be encouraged that God is doing the same in you.


Works Cited:

Drucker, Peter. "Managing Oneself." Harvard Business Review OnPoint 2009, p.32-42.

Nordman, Patricia "Go to the Ant." 6 May. 2006 EzineArticles.com. 19 Dec. 2009 .

Vine, W. E., Merrill F. Unger and William White. “House.” Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words: With Topical Index. Nashville: Thompson Nelson Publishers, 1996.