Latest / Mount Eaton Church / Father's Day 2025 - Elder Lanny

Transcript

Father's Day 2025 - Elder Lanny · Mount Eaton Church

0:09
I wasn't picked for this. I drew the short straw.
0:14
That's why I'm here. We were trying to get Owen
0:17
married and having a kid in a hurry, but that
0:20
didn't work. So you're stuck with me. I'm not
0:30
here because I'm the best father in the world.
0:31
I'm not here because I'm a good father. That's
0:34
my kids. And they'll probably have a lot of stories
0:37
about me that I wouldn't want told. But God is
0:40
good. And in the Bible, he doesn't mix words.
0:45
He shows us everything. If I would have written
0:47
the Bible, I'd miss a lot of stuff and take a
0:49
lot of stuff out of there. I wouldn't show my
0:52
dirty laundry. But God shows it to show that
0:56
we are sinners. And we need help. We need a savior.
1:00
And so I'm a father that has made mistakes. But
1:04
God realizes that unless you have him to help
1:06
you, you will always make mistakes. You will
1:10
never be making the right choice for your children.
1:12
My kids will probably tell you I've been impatient
1:15
at times. There's times I probably sludge them
1:18
off and say, go to your mom. She'll help you.
1:20
I remember one time when I was teaching my oldest
1:23
one how to drive, we had just went out the mountain
1:25
road where I thought it'd be safe. There's no
1:26
cars out there. There's nothing he can hit. And
1:29
I told him to turn here, and he turned into a
1:31
cornfield. There was a street just 15 feet away.
1:39
But I guess he was a little bit nervous with
1:42
me being the teacher. I got out of the car and
1:46
said, you're getting out and we are going home.
1:48
And this two minute lesson is over. And when
1:51
I got home and Sue said, how did it go? I said,
1:53
don't even ask. It's not good. Our daughter,
1:59
when she started learning to drive, I took her
2:01
out to Monroe too. At least she didn't go into
2:04
cornfield. But when she got her license, she
2:07
knocked off a stop sign in Kempton. That didn't
2:11
make me happy. I was not a patient father. We
2:13
got that repair at least without the insurance
2:15
company knowing about it. She then swiped the
2:17
car in the middle of Slade Dale. That wasn't
2:20
good. And then when I got the call, that really
2:23
got me, and I was not a patient father because
2:25
I told them, you're on my policy. Yes, I have
2:30
$300 ,000, but if you hit something and it's
2:32
bad, I will lose the house, we will lose the
2:35
business. And the minute she said, Dad, I knew
2:40
there was a problem. I'm in Schnecksville, and
2:43
I hit a school bus. Parents are supposed to be
2:49
patient. Well, I wasn't patient. The next day,
2:53
they canceled me. And I said, I've been with
2:58
you 25 years, and you just canceled me. They
3:00
said, get rid of your daughter. Get her off the
3:02
policy. We'll reinstate you the next day. And
3:06
then my daughter learned what I'd said. It will
3:09
cost you if you have an accident. Because she
3:11
came off the policy and she paid big time. And
3:15
no longer was dad paying for insurance. These
3:18
are the difficult things we have to do as a father.
3:21
But she had to learn a lesson. And now you're
3:24
going to pay for your own insurance and it's
3:26
going to hurt you. But I think she learned a
3:28
lesson. I have a 50 -year -old right now, 51,
3:33
and he still tries our patience. I have a 45
3:38
-year -old that didn't listen to me, and he's
3:40
got problems. Our daughter pretends she listens
3:43
to us. She called us not too long ago and said,
3:46
I'm considering getting a new position with the
3:49
University of Hawaii. What do you think, Dad?
3:52
And I said, what does it involve? She said, well,
3:54
I'm working three days a week now. It's going
3:56
to be full -time. That means I have to put the
3:58
kids in daycare full -time. I said, it's not
4:00
a good idea. It's not good. The money will come.
4:05
You need to be home for your kids. She didn't
4:08
listen. We are now going out to Hawaii, and she
4:11
is paying for it for 15 days because she can't
4:15
take a vacation for six months, and her husband's
4:18
in the military. He just got a promotion. He
4:20
can't take a vacation for six months, and she
4:22
needs somebody to watch the two kids for 15 days
4:24
because the daycare is closed. I said, if you
4:30
take this job, there will be problems. Oh, Dad,
4:34
you don't understand. It's a hard job being a
4:39
father, praying and asking God what is best for
4:42
our kids and hoping we're giving them the best
4:44
instructions, but they still have to listen.
4:47
And even after that, we'll say something. She'll
4:49
say, oh, Dad, you and Mom are old. You don't
4:52
know what it's all about. No, we don't know what
4:55
it's all about. We've just been there for all
4:57
our years, and we've made the mistakes that we
4:59
don't want you to make, and we're trying to give
5:01
you some sort of advice. So I'm not a perfect
5:05
father. I wish I could change some things. But
5:08
like I said, God doesn't hold anything back.
5:12
And all the dirty laundry is in the Bible. And
5:15
I'm going to talk today about three types of
5:17
fathers. The good, the bad, and the ugly. Jodi
5:22
gave me a good bit of advice. She said, it's
5:24
Father's Day. Let them go home on a good note,
5:27
so I'm switching it. I'm going to start with
5:29
the ugly and go back to the good ones. And the
5:34
second part of the message today will be, and
5:38
John's waiting for this, the rest of the story
5:41
with my not obeying my father and walking home
5:44
by myself when I was probably about eight years
5:46
old and not getting lost and having the cops
5:48
looking for me. The second part is a different
5:52
part. It's about a legacy that you will leave
5:56
as a father for your kids. When I was superintendent
6:00
of the Sunday school in the Slate there, we always
6:02
got a special speaker in for Father's Day and
6:04
Mother's Day. And one day I said to the board,
6:06
I'm going to mix it up this year. I'm going to
6:08
get a mother to speak for Father's Day. And they
6:11
looked at me like I had come out of the moon
6:13
or something. I said, I think it would be a good
6:15
perspective. We've never had a mother talk about
6:17
Father's Day. And they said, okay, we'll go with
6:21
it. So I asked a good Christian woman from our
6:24
sister church. And I said, would you speak for
6:27
Father's Day for us? And she said, oh, Lanny,
6:30
I had a horrible father. I don't know what I
6:35
could say. I had no idea what I could say. I
6:39
said, it would be a different perspective. We're
6:42
always praising fathers and seeing how good fathers
6:44
are, but people need to know that some of them
6:47
out there need God and need to know how to be
6:50
a father. And unless they have God, they'll never
6:53
know how to be a good father. And so she came.
6:56
And the thing that struck my mind was she said,
6:59
I wish one thing my father would have given me.
7:03
And that was a legacy. I have nothing to say
7:07
about my father except he was my father. How
7:12
sad. But it got our attention that when we leave
7:16
this earth, will we have a legacy for our kids?
7:20
Will somebody at my funeral? say one or two good
7:24
things about me. Not that I taught them how to
7:27
fish or hunt or taught them how to drive, but
7:30
I taught them about Christ and how they should
7:33
live a life that would be pleasing to him. Some
7:36
shred of evidence that I made a difference in
7:39
somebody's life, that I have some sort of legacy.
7:43
And that's the second part. So as we look at
7:46
this today, I picked a scripture, and it's another
7:50
funny story because... I'll read it first, John
7:54
14, 8. Philip said, Lord, show us a father, and
7:58
that is all we need. That's enough for us. Just
8:00
show us a father. And Jesus said, don't you know
8:02
me, Philip? I've been with you such a long time.
8:06
Anyone who's seen me has seen a father. How can
8:08
you say, show us a father? Don't you believe
8:11
that I and the Father are one? The Father is
8:14
in me. When I was 12 years old, I went to the
8:18
post office in Slatedale. And they spoke Pennsylvania
8:21
Dutch back then. And I walked in, and the guy
8:25
that was standing there said to the postmaster,
8:27
I know he said, who is he in Dutch? That's what
8:29
I found out later. And he looked at me and said,
8:31
he's Tootie Saiboo. And I thought, what did he
8:35
call me? My father's name was Tootie, and I was
8:40
Tootie's boy, Tootie Saiboo. And I said, I've
8:45
never met you. How do you know I'm Tootie's son?
8:47
He said, you have a big nose and bushy eyebrows.
8:49
I can see it. I look like my father. If you've
8:56
seen my father, you've seen me. It's comical.
9:01
Except my daughter plucks her eyebrows. But she
9:05
can't do anything about her big nose. When they
9:08
see her, they see me. Now we have some serious
9:12
business to get to. An ugly father. There's a
9:16
lot of ugly fathers out there. It doesn't matter
9:19
who your parents are, who your relation is. It
9:23
doesn't matter when it comes to being a father.
9:25
Lot was Abraham's nephew. You'd think that would
9:29
account for something, but it didn't. Genesis
9:33
19, verses 1 through 8. The two angels arrived
9:36
at Sodom in the evening and Lot was sitting there
9:39
in the gateway of the city. That's important
9:41
right there. He was a hypocrite. He was living
9:43
in a sinful city. He should have known better.
9:46
He's sitting at the gate trying to be some kind
9:47
of judge. And he has no right to be a judge.
9:51
He said he saw the men. He got up and bowed down
9:53
to them and put his face to the ground. My Lord,
9:57
he said, please turn aside to your servant's
9:59
house. You can wash your feet and spend the night
10:01
and go on your way early in the morning. Know
10:04
the answer, we will spend the night in the square.
10:06
But he insisted so strongly that they did go
10:09
with him and entered his house. He prepared a
10:12
meal for them, bacon bread without yeast, and
10:14
they ate. And before they had gone to bed, all
10:16
the men of every part of the city of Sodom, both
10:19
the young and old, surrounded the house. They
10:21
called to Lot, where are the men who came with
10:24
you tonight? Bring them out here so that we can,
10:26
you know what, with them. Lot went outside to
10:31
meet and shut the door behind him and said, no,
10:33
my friends, don't do this wicked thing. Look,
10:37
I have two daughters. I will bring them out for
10:40
you. It doesn't get any uglier than that. I can
10:44
barely say that, the thought that a man would
10:47
think of doing something like that. But God doesn't
10:51
hide anything. He shows us exactly what men are
10:54
like, what the world is like without him. Ugly
10:58
father, how can anyone even imagine doing something
11:01
like this? But it's there for us to read, to
11:05
understand that men can be horrible, not have
11:08
any concern whatsoever for their family, and
11:11
do such a horrific thing like this. I just can't
11:16
even imagine it, the thought of it. A father
11:19
is supposed to nurture, protect, and care for
11:21
his children. That's what God says. We are responsible
11:25
for them. not to do some despicable thing like
11:28
this. You can make excuses and say, well, he
11:31
had the lesser of two evils to choose beside.
11:33
Was he going to send the angels out or send his
11:34
kids out? So he had no choice. Sin is sin. There's
11:38
no two choices here. Both were sinful, and he
11:42
chose a horrible choice. Looked like the angels
11:46
spared his daughters. Does this happen today
11:49
yet, or is this just in the Bible? Up to last
11:52
year, we supported Bo Raines and his family in
11:55
India. They came off the field last year. Bo
11:58
Raines was a soccer player, and he went to India
12:02
with one specific purpose, and that was to teach
12:04
young men and boys how to play soccer. And with
12:08
it, we'd teach them the gospel. Because the habit
12:12
in India was, if you couldn't afford a daughter,
12:15
you sold her into prostitution. And Bo was trying
12:19
his best. to save as many dollars as he could.
12:23
And that's why he went to India. It happens today
12:26
yet. There are still ugly fathers out there today
12:29
that don't know how God wants them to live a
12:33
life and please him. So it does happen today.
12:37
And I said, only without God reaching the person
12:40
can there be a change. Because while we all are
12:44
sinful, we would be like that person if we didn't
12:48
have... the grace that God has given us and changed
12:51
our lives, we would be that ugly person. Thank
12:54
God that he's changed some of us and made us
12:58
the person that we are today. Well, Jody, I got
13:01
the ugly one out of the way. There are some bad
13:07
fathers in the Bible also. Fathers that neglect
13:10
their family or are more concerned about their
13:13
wealth and their possessions in doing what God
13:16
has commanded them to do. This is a long one,
13:20
so I will read this one. It's 1 Samuel 25, verses
13:24
2 to 17. You should all be familiar with this
13:28
story. Then David moved down into the desert
13:31
of Moan. A certain man in Moan who had property
13:33
there in Carmel was very wealthy. He had a lot
13:37
of possessions. He had 1 ,000 goats and 3 ,000
13:40
sheep, which he was shearing in Carmel. His name
13:43
was Nabal, and his wife's name was Abigail. She
13:46
was intelligent and beautiful. But her husband,
13:49
Akebonai, was surly and mean in his dealings.
13:52
When David was in the desert, he heard that Nabal
13:55
was shearing sheep. So he sent ten young men
13:57
and said to them, Go up to Nabal at Carmel and
14:00
greet him in my name. Say to him, Long life to
14:03
you, good health to you and your household, and
14:05
good health to all that is yours. Now I hear
14:08
that it is sheep -shearing time. When the shepherds
14:11
were with us, We did not mistreat them. And the
14:14
whole time they were at Carmel, nothing of theirs
14:16
was missing. We took care of them for you. Ask
14:19
your own servants, and they will testify to this.
14:21
Therefore, be favorable toward my young men,
14:24
since we have come at a festive time. Please
14:27
give your servants to your son David, whatever
14:29
you find for them. When David's men arrived,
14:32
they gave Nabal a message in David's name, and
14:35
they waited. Nabal was greedy, conceited. prideful,
14:41
what is mine is mine. God will not get any of
14:44
it. Not teaching his children the way God wanted
14:48
us to be good stewards. Nabal answered David's
14:50
servant, who is this David? Who is the son of
14:53
Jesse? Many servants are breaking away from their
14:56
masters these days. Why should I take my bread
14:58
and my water and meat that I have slaughtered
15:01
from my shears and give it to men coming from
15:03
who knows where? David's men turned around and
15:07
went back. And when they arrived, they reported
15:09
every word. David said to his men, put on your
15:13
swords. So they put on his swords and David put
15:16
on his also. He took 400 men with him. And guess
15:21
what they were going to do? To kill Nabal and
15:25
all his household. The men went to Abigail, the
15:28
wife, and told her what had happened. And she
15:31
realized how bad her husband was in treating
15:34
God's servant. And she took out. bread and other
15:38
things for the men and came before David and
15:41
said, forgive my husband. He is a mean and miserable
15:44
man. He is a fool. That's what his name means.
15:47
And David said, far be it that you would not
15:51
come. I would have committed murder. I would
15:54
have killed Nabal and all of his male children.
15:57
No one would have survived till morning because
16:00
David realized this man was evil and needed to
16:03
be put to death. And so this man, jeopardize
16:07
his family because he was greedy and stingy and
16:10
didn't recognize God's servants. We ought to
16:14
recognize God's servants and treat them well.
16:17
We ought to recognize that God has given us our
16:18
possessions, not so we can hang on to them, but
16:21
to give them back to him. Whenever he's given
16:24
us wealth, we're supposed to share it. We're
16:26
supposed to be good stewards of it and make sure
16:29
that we're not just hoarding it for some time.
16:31
But in this particular case, He was not doing
16:36
what he should be doing. Does it happen today?
16:38
Are there still bad men like this? One of the
16:42
saddest things I heard from White's Christmas
16:45
tree farm in Freedon's. I used to buy greens
16:48
off of him. And he said, you want to hear a good
16:50
one? I said, yeah, sure. He said, what really
16:53
gets me is when I look down from my house at
16:55
the trees in the field and I see a car pull up.
16:59
And a man gets out and takes off his Sunday jacket
17:02
and his tie and goes in the field with his son
17:05
and a saw and they cut down one of my trees.
17:08
A father is bringing his son home from church
17:10
and teaches him how to steal a Christmas tree.
17:14
Pretty bad, isn't it? There are bad fathers today
17:17
yet because they haven't been taught. They haven't
17:21
had God touch them, let them realize that there's
17:24
a better way. Back then, a Christmas tree cost
17:26
about 20 bucks. You were risked. The future of
17:30
your son, over $20. Hang on to $20 and teach
17:36
your kid how to steal a Christmas tree. I'll
17:39
say it. Engaging your kids, it does still happen
17:42
today. The second one I think we all should know
17:45
about, and that is Eli, the priest, who had two
17:48
wicked sons, Phoenicians and Habniah. It says
17:52
in 1 Samuel 2, 12 -16, Eli's sons were wicked
17:55
men. They had no regard for the Lord. Now, it
17:59
was a practice that the priest, when the people
18:00
came with an offering and a sacrifice, while
18:04
the meat was being boiled, the servant was allowed
18:06
to take a three -pronged fork and plunge it into
18:09
the pan or kettle or cauldron, and whatever came
18:12
up, that would be used for the priest and also
18:14
for the servants of the priest. But this is how
18:18
they treated all the Israelites. This was the
18:20
way it was done. But even before the fat was
18:23
burned, his sons would say, Give us now before
18:27
we boil this. We don't like boiled meat. We like
18:30
raw meat. So they were blaspheming the sacrifice
18:33
of the Lord. They were treating the Lord's offering
18:36
with contempt. In chapter 3, verse 13, this is
18:42
what it says. For I told him, Eli, that I would
18:47
judge his family forever because of the sin he
18:51
knew about and did nothing about it. He knew
18:55
about it. He knew what his sons were doing. He
18:57
knew his sons were corrupt and blaspheming gods,
19:00
and he did nothing about it. His sons have made
19:03
themselves contemptible. His son says, blaspheming
19:06
God, and Eli refrained from restraining them.
19:12
He looked the other way. The guilt of Eli and
19:15
his household will never be atoned for by any
19:18
sacrifice or any offering. It's pretty plain,
19:22
isn't it? It's hard to discipline your kids.
19:26
It's hard to, oh, I've got to go tell them again.
19:29
I don't want to. I don't want to be a father
19:33
today. One of the hardest things I had to do,
19:36
my son was a missionary in New York City, preaching
19:40
the gospel, and he got in trouble in New York.
19:43
He did something he should not have done. And
19:45
I got a call from Word of Life in Scroon Lake,
19:48
and they said, is your son home? And I said,
19:49
yes. And Sam Fry, who was in charge of opening
19:53
evangelism, said, did your son talk to you? I
19:58
said, no. I said, he's going to New York this
20:00
weekend to pass out food baskets for the homeless.
20:04
He said, I think I better talk to you. He said,
20:07
we've asked Lanny to resign. He's been doing
20:11
something in New York which is wrong. It's been
20:14
brought to our attention, and we have to ask
20:16
him to resign from the mission field. I never
20:21
thought as a father I'd have to experience that
20:25
to go down and tell my son, who was a missionary,
20:30
that he was not allowed to go back to New York
20:32
City. I went down and told my son, son, you are
20:37
not fit to preach the gospel this weekend. Oh,
20:43
God, why don't you ask somebody else to do this?
20:48
Because I was a father. That had to do it. I
20:52
said, I will not allow you as your father to
20:56
go down in New York this weekend. You will stay
20:59
with us. We will help you to heal. We will restore
21:03
you into God's favor. And we did. That was the
21:08
other side of being a father. Letting him know
21:11
that he has crossed the line. Letting him know
21:13
that he has sinned against God. But letting him
21:15
know that we are there for him. And we got him
21:18
counseling. And he spent about a year in our
21:21
house. And then he went back on his own again.
21:25
But that discipline was one of the hardest things
21:28
I ever had to do as a father. If I had turned
21:32
away like Eli, God help us. You have to make
21:36
some really tough decisions as a father. And
21:39
you make a choice. Either I do or I don't. It's
21:45
not an easy job. Sue wanted five. I'm glad she
21:49
stopped at three. Or I probably wouldn't have
21:52
any hair left. Because there have been some trying
21:56
times. But we have a tough job to do. It's not
22:00
an easy job. And some fathers shrink away from
22:03
it. But if you're following what God wants you
22:06
to do, you do what he asks you to do. At whatever
22:09
cost. Whatever hurt it costs you, you have to
22:12
do it. You have no choice in the matter. And
22:15
as I said, that was one of the hardest things
22:17
I ever had to do as a father. There's good news
22:21
coming. The Bible shows us the ugly, the bad,
22:26
but shows us good. And Job was a good father.
22:31
He's our example. It says in the land of Uz,
22:34
there lived a man whose name was Job. The man
22:37
was blameless, upright, feared God, shunned evil.
22:41
He had seven sons and three daughters. He was
22:44
the greatest man among all the peoples of the
22:47
East. He provided for his children. It said they
22:52
all had their own houses. They had their own
22:54
servants. They had their own oxen, their own
22:56
donkeys. He was generous toward his children.
23:01
He also, though, gave them liberty. The scripture
23:07
says don't exasperate your children. Discipline
23:11
them, correct them. but give them some space.
23:15
Don't hover over them all the time. It was a
23:19
lesson that I had to learn because I thought
23:21
if I didn't, I'd be missing something. They'd
23:24
go left or right, and I hovered over them a little
23:27
bit too much. He allowed his children youthful
23:30
liberty, feasting, but it says he didn't allow
23:33
them youthful lusts. He put a limit on it. They're
23:37
going to have some feasting, but I'm watching
23:39
them. And when they step over the line, I'm going
23:41
to let them know they've stepped over the line.
23:42
But just in case, he said that they cursed God
23:46
or just said something wrong about God. When
23:48
the feasting was over, he made them come and
23:50
he would purify them. Each and every one of them,
23:53
give sacrifices for them. Not just, okay, all
23:55
you guys gather around, all 10 of you, you're
23:58
blessed and that's it. He did a sacrifice for
24:00
each and every individual child to make sure
24:02
they were covered if they had sinned against
24:05
God. because he was still the priest of the family.
24:09
Even though they had left his home and his household,
24:11
he was still the priest, the one in charge of
24:13
them, the one to watch over them. And so it says
24:17
that he instructed them to come purify themselves,
24:19
and when a period of feasting was done, he did
24:21
his course, what he always did, every time. Early
24:24
in the morning, he would sacrifice for them,
24:26
and he said this was his regular custom, every
24:29
time that they had a feasting or a party, let's
24:33
say, at his house, at their house. He would make
24:36
sure he sacrificed for them. He was highly respected,
24:39
Job 29, 7 -11. When I went to the gate and took
24:44
my seat at the public square, whoever heard me
24:47
spoke well of me, and those that saw me commended
24:49
me. He was fair and honest, Job 29, 12 -17. I
24:55
rescued the poor who cried for help, the fathers
24:58
who had none to assist them. I was the eyes of
25:01
the blind and feet of the lame. I was father
25:03
to the needy. He was a wise counselor, Job 29,
25:08
21 to 24. Men listened to me expectantly, waiting
25:11
in silence for my counsel. He was an honest employer,
25:15
Job 31, 13 to 15. I had not denied justice for
25:20
any of my manservants or maidservants. He was
25:23
hospitable and generous, Job 31, 16 to 21. Let
25:27
my arm fall off of the shoulder if I had deprived
25:31
anyone who deserves rescue. or poor. I have kept
25:36
not my bread to myself. I have given everything
25:38
that I have to others. I have seen anyone perish.
25:41
I have not seen anyone perish that I could give
25:44
clothing to. And lastly, it says he was even
25:47
a farmer of crops. Job 31, 38 -40. Even the land
25:52
cannot cry against me. I've even treated the
25:56
land properly. That's a good man. I don't know
25:59
what else we could say about him. All that he
26:02
did. And yet even he was, what, put through trials
26:05
to be tested to see just how he was. As I said,
26:10
I hovered over my kids a little bit too much,
26:12
and Sue said, lighten up a little bit. They're
26:15
teenagers. Our son Daniel was kind of shy, and
26:20
I thought it would be good for him to get around
26:21
other teenagers, get out there away from me.
26:23
And Eustace Christ was around at the area. And
26:26
so I drove, and this isn't just how to do it.
26:30
I drove an hour up to Strasburg. We'd sit in
26:33
the car for two hours while the meeting went
26:34
on, then drive back again. It was pretty cold
26:37
in the wintertime, but I didn't want to be in
26:39
there. John Miller said, you can come in. I said,
26:41
no, this is his time with other kids and with
26:44
you. But I knew he was getting sad teaching away
26:46
from me, getting it from another perspective.
26:50
He needed time of feasting because there was
26:52
no way he was going to drink a liter of Coke
26:55
and eat 10 pieces of pizza in my living room.
26:59
No way. No. He could do it somewhere else, but
27:04
not in my place. And so if he wants to mess up
27:07
John Miller's room, that's fine with me. More
27:10
power to you. But he needed that time to get
27:12
away from me and get a perspective of the gospel
27:16
from somebody else. Okay? Our daughter went one
27:20
time, she won a burping contest and never went
27:22
back. Imagine. They're not going to burp in my
27:25
house. You're going to tell them, what's wrong
27:26
with you? But they had a burping contest. Let
27:29
your kids have some fun. Lighten up a little
27:34
bit, right? They have to. Okay? It's all part
27:38
of it. But don't exasperate your kids. Make sure
27:43
you give them some time for themselves. All right?
27:47
The perfect father. There is a perfect father.
27:51
We haven't seen him yet. We've read about him.
27:54
He's all through this book. One day we will see
27:57
him. But we've read about his son. And he said,
28:01
if you've seen me, you've seen the Father. And
28:04
we've seen everything that we need to see. Jesus
28:07
was no respecter of persons. He was loving. He
28:10
was kind. He was just. He healed the sick. He
28:14
fed the hungry. He wept for those that were suffering
28:16
loss. He restored the sight to the blind. He
28:19
brought back those who had died to their loved
28:21
ones. He exercised discipline when necessary.
28:24
He taught us about the Heavenly Father. He never
28:26
left us alone. He said he would never lose any
28:29
that had been trusted to him. He showed us mercy
28:31
and kindness, taught us how to pray, how to resist
28:34
temptation and the wiles of the devil. He told
28:37
us he was preparing a place for us so that we
28:39
could dwell with him for all of eternity. Around
28:42
the clock, he's always available to answer any
28:44
concern or problem we have. And he knew us before
28:47
we were even born. And I could go on and on.
28:51
The scripture backs it up. Matthew 5, 48, be
28:54
perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is
28:56
perfect. Psalm 18, 30, as for God, his way is
29:00
perfect. Psalm 19, 7, the law of the Lord is
29:03
perfect. 1 Corinthians 13, 10, when the perfection
29:08
comes. Psalm 51 and 2, the mighty one, the God,
29:12
the Lord from Zion, perfect in beauty. Luke 11,
29:16
11, which of you fathers, if your son asks for
29:19
a fish, will give him a snake? If you then who
29:22
are evil and know how to give good gifts, how
29:25
much more will your Father in heaven give you
29:28
that perfect gift, the Holy Spirit, which will
29:30
be with you for all of eternity until I come
29:32
back to get you? In Hebrews 1 .3, the Son is
29:36
the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation
29:40
of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful
29:45
word. So we have not yet seen the perfect father,
29:49
but we've seen a good representation of him in
29:51
the Bible. And remember what I said, the Bible
29:54
tells us all, the ugly, the bad, and the good.
29:57
And it shows us what the father is like. He also
30:02
talks about a perfect father which will discipline
30:04
us, and God does. Sometimes we wonder, and then
30:08
we realize, yeah, there's no wonder. I shouldn't
30:11
have did this, Lord. You're right. I shouldn't
30:14
have been here. I shouldn't have been there.
30:16
That's a perfect father. It says if your father
30:19
does not discipline, then you are an illegitimate
30:21
child. But God disciplines us because he cares
30:24
about us. And he wants us to go on that straight
30:27
path and stops us before we get off that path.
30:33
I won't tell you the times that he stopped me.
30:36
That's between me and him. But there were times
30:39
that he stopped me and said, Lanny, I love you.
30:42
Don't do that. And I am the man I am today because
30:46
he stopped me. When my father wasn't around to
30:49
stop me, God stopped me. And every one of us
30:52
have children that are on their own sometimes.
30:55
And that's when you pray, God, I'm not there,
30:58
but would you stop them? Would you stop them
31:01
from doing what I know they're going to try to
31:02
do before they do it? And one minute could ruin
31:08
their life. But we're glad we have a Heavenly
31:10
Father that's perfect in every way. And even
31:13
when we are imperfect, he watches over us and
31:15
takes care of our children. I talked about this
31:20
lady that said she had no legacy of her father.
31:23
How sad. It is sad. John, here comes the rest
31:28
of the story. We talked about last week about
31:31
me not obeying my father and walking home when
31:33
I was eight years old, and luckily I got there.
31:36
My dad, oh boy, I tell you, I thought my sister
31:39
was bawling. She said, you're going to get it.
31:42
Got in the cops, they were looking all over town
31:44
for me, and I had walked home by myself. My dad
31:48
never taught a Sunday school class. He never
31:50
was involved in church at all. He took us, he
31:53
went, but never had any position of authority
31:56
or anything that I know of. And yet, I realized
32:00
later in life that he was the Bible I saw. I
32:05
saw in him the Heavenly Father. If you've seen
32:08
Dad, you've seen the Heavenly Father. And that's
32:11
a legacy I have from him. When I thought I'd
32:14
be in my room all night and not have supper,
32:16
he came in, and I not knowing what was going
32:19
on, he said, I love you, but you caused me a
32:23
lot of worry tonight. I thought I'd lost you.
32:27
He said, you know what you did was wrong. And
32:30
I said, yes. You know, you disobeyed me. I said,
32:33
yes. He said, the next time when I ask you to
32:36
do something, will you obey me and listen to
32:39
me? And I said, yes. And you know what he said?
32:44
Then I forgive you. And it's forgotten. A couple
32:48
years later when I heard a pastor say, you messed
32:51
up a lot. But the father says he forgives you
32:55
if you're willing to admit that you sinned against
32:57
him. And he will forget it. And he will tell
33:01
you he loves you. My father, who never taught
33:03
a Sunday school class, gave me the gospel right
33:07
there. I don't know if he knew it. But he gave
33:10
it to me in plain, simple terms. You have sinned
33:13
against me. I forgive you. Don't do it again.
33:17
That's a legacy that I have of my father. The
33:21
second point, my father wasn't perfect. He was
33:24
impatient at times. And he taught us. We didn't
33:28
have the money. My brother was sick a lot. A
33:30
lot of the money went for medication. And he
33:33
wanted to take us fishing. We had three of us.
33:35
He didn't have the money to buy a license. He
33:37
couldn't buy a license. So he said, Lane, I'm
33:40
going to teach you how to make that double loop.
33:43
So we've ripped a line. You can fix it. And how
33:46
to put the hook through. And I practiced. I really
33:47
did. I tried. And I got it. And I said, Dad,
33:51
I can do it. Look at it. He said, good. I taught
33:53
you well. Fishing day, no problems. We're going
33:56
to go fishing. First time I throw in, I got a
33:59
rock bass. Ripped the line. He said, okay, son.
34:05
I taught you how to do it. You can do it. Well,
34:08
fishing back then was 5 in the morning. It was
34:10
pitch black. I hadn't practiced in the dark.
34:13
I practiced during the daytime when I could see
34:15
my hands. And it was cold that morning. My hands
34:18
were freezing. I couldn't do it. I tried, and
34:21
he got impatient with me. And he said, didn't
34:24
I teach you how to do this? He said, I did this
34:26
so you wouldn't have this problem. And I didn't
34:30
understand him. How could he be so impatient
34:33
with me over a little thing like this? Well,
34:36
I injured an insult. My sister had to go up and
34:38
show me how to do it. So she went up with me
34:41
to the street where the light was, and she fixed
34:43
it. We came back down, and I could fish the rest
34:45
of the day. But that bothered me. How could my
34:47
dad be so impatient with me? If he loves me,
34:50
how could he do that to me? Well, there's a story
34:53
in the Bible about that, and that is Jesus was
34:57
talking about them not bringing bread, and the
35:01
disciples said, what are you talking about bread
35:03
for? We have no idea what's going on. And Jesus
35:06
got disturbed with them and said, have I been
35:09
with you so long and you guys don't get it? I'm
35:12
not talking about bread. I'm talking about other
35:14
things. Was Jesus impatient with them? Yes. Why?
35:18
Because he was trying to teach them a life lesson
35:21
and they missed it. Because he wasn't going to
35:23
be with them much longer. And he was trying to
35:25
share something with them that they could have
35:28
for the rest of their life, the gospel. And yes,
35:31
Jesus was impatient with them, but for a reason.
35:33
Like my dad was impatient. This was something
35:36
important. He said, I want to teach you how to
35:37
do things. You know, if you don't learn this,
35:39
when I teach you how to use a hammer, when I
35:41
teach you how to use a saw, you're going to miss
35:43
the boat. And I want you to know these things.
35:46
So that's why Jesus was impatient with them at
35:49
this time. And lastly, I don't have to look at
35:53
my notes for this one. We, uh, she was at home
35:57
with the kids for... I guess 10 years. So we
36:01
didn't build our house until we were 38 years
36:02
old. She wasn't working. She was home with the
36:06
kids. We thought that was important. And my uncle's
36:10
mother had died, and he couldn't get any insurance
36:14
on the farm, the buildings, the equipment, nothing.
36:17
And he said, why don't you come up and live on
36:19
the farm? He said, I won't charge you rent. You
36:22
can live there rent -free. Just pay for the electric.
36:25
the oil, and just mow the grass for me, help
36:27
me out in the field. And that's what I did. I
36:29
helped bring the hay and helped other things.
36:31
I plowed for him. And then after 13 years, we
36:34
finally said, you know what? We're going to try
36:35
to build our own home. So we went to the contractor.
36:38
We got the price. $65 ,000. Back then, that was
36:42
a lot of money. In the 80s, 12 % interest. They
36:47
complain about 4 % and 5 % now. $625 .25. I'll
36:53
never forget. And I was scared. We hadn't had
36:57
a mortgage or rent for 13 years. And we were
37:00
barely making it now. So how are we going to
37:02
do this? And so where did I go? To my father.
37:07
And he said, what do you need, son? I said, I
37:11
need to talk. Sit down, he said. What does the
37:15
Heavenly Father say? Come before me. Sit down.
37:17
Let's have a talk. And I said, Dad, we... We're
37:21
thinking of building, you know that. He said,
37:23
oh, he was so happy for us. And I said, I don't
37:26
know if we can make it or not. I'm self -employed
37:28
in wintertime. I got nothing. I mean, I can try
37:30
to find other jobs, but December through April,
37:33
we won't have any money coming in. And it's $625
37:36
a month. I said, I don't know if we get in trouble.
37:39
What's going to happen? We could lose the house.
37:42
He looked at me and said, son, they will never
37:45
take this house away from you. Never. I'm your
37:49
father. And I won't let that happen. What does
37:53
the Heavenly Father say? Jesus said, those that
37:56
the Father has given to me, no one will take
38:00
them away from me. They are mine. And don't you
38:03
try to mess with them. My dad taught me another
38:06
lesson from the Bible without preaching a word.
38:10
And I'll tell you something else. The Bible says
38:12
that the Father knows our need before we even
38:15
ask it. I would walk in the house and he would
38:18
say, Mom, Lanny's here for money. He just knew
38:23
in my face because he knew I wouldn't ask for
38:25
it. And she would come out with $625 and 25 cents
38:29
in cash. I didn't have to wait for them to go
38:32
to the bank. I didn't have to wait for a check
38:33
to clear. He knew I needed now and then or I
38:36
wouldn't have come for it. And he answered me
38:38
on the spot, met all my needs. And if I needed
38:41
the next month and I came in, he'd say, Mom,
38:44
Lanny needs money. And he got paid back, but
38:47
he never asked for it. If it took me till April,
38:51
he never said a word. He never taught a Sunday
38:54
school lesson. He never was a deacon. He never
38:56
was an elder. But he was a good father who taught
39:01
me the heavenly father. And I have a legacy of
39:05
my father. It's hard because some people don't
39:10
have a good father. And they wish they did. But
39:12
I'll tell you what, my wife had a horrible father.
39:16
He walked out on six kids. No support. She had
39:20
to put the four boys into the home. She would
39:23
take Sue and her sister to work with her. And
39:26
they stayed in the locker room at Phoebe's home
39:28
where she was a nurse's aide. She worked a night
39:32
shift. That's where they stayed till morning.
39:34
And one by one, the mother got the kids out of
39:38
the home. But God provided for her. There was
39:42
a youth director that took her by the side and
39:44
was a father for her. And my father. became her
39:48
father. God will provide. So even people out
39:52
there that have a bad, bad father and bad experience,
39:55
God will provide for you. Someone in your life,
39:58
there will be someone that he will send to you
40:00
to help you to get over the hump for some of
40:03
the things that you have gone through. Because
40:06
God is that perfect father and that perfect provider.
40:10
As I said, I wasn't picked for this because I'm
40:12
a good father. I've made a lot of mistakes. But
40:16
hopefully, We look at the Bible and we see that
40:19
there is hope if God is our father. And he's
40:22
the one that teaches us what is right and what
40:24
is wrong and how we can impart that to our kids.
40:27
And if I messed up with Lanny, and if I messed
40:30
up with Daniel, and if I messed up with Michelle,
40:33
I got grandkids and I can try to make it up.
40:38
And little Larry says, you're a good grandpa.
40:43
And that makes me feel good. We get our opportunities.
40:48
Sometimes we miss the opportunities we're given,
40:50
but God gives us other opportunities. And when
40:53
he says, can I stay here, Grandpa? Say, no, just
40:56
for the weekend. You're going back home. Okay,
41:00
he says. That's good enough. Let's pray. Father,
41:05
it is not easy being an earthly father. Oh, it's
41:09
not easy. It's so hard. One day, Father, I pray
41:13
that we will realize that we've done the best
41:16
that we could do. We've made mistakes. We haven't
41:19
been faithful to you, perhaps, in teaching them
41:21
some of the things we should teach them. We've
41:24
been impatient. We've been too busy for them.
41:26
We've worked too hard. All the things we could
41:28
say we did wrong. But we're thankful, Father,
41:31
that in all our mistakes, you were there for
41:33
us, too, that when we missed up, you were there
41:36
to help them to stay on a straight path. We ask,
41:41
Father, that you would touch each and every father
41:43
here, each and every grandfather here, each and
41:45
every father to be, and in a very special way,
41:49
help them each and every day to be what you want
41:52
them to be, the father for their children or
41:55
the father for their grandchildren, and also
41:58
to be good husbands. We thank you and praise
42:01
you for everything you've done for us and will
42:03
do in Christ's name. Amen.