Life2gether

What Is Father Hunger? from Desiring God on Vimeo.

Inescapable Headship from Desiring God on Vimeo.

Do you struggle with fear? Are you drowning in the pool of performance? I encourage you to read these 3 posts by Bob Hudson.

• Pool of Fear Part 1
• Pool of Fear Part 2
• Pool of Fear Part 3

Bob is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Colorado with a Master of Arts in Counseling from Denver Seminary and a Master of Divinity from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. I met him at an event called Men at the Cross awhile back.

Bob just started a new blog. His voice is needed in the lives of many men.

Below is a collection of posts to encourage fathers as we approach Father’s Day.

Calling Fathers to Raise Men by Randy Stinson

What’s a Christian Dad Supposed to Do by Randy Stinson

How I Pastor My Family by Justin Hyde

Fathers, Don’t Provoke Your Children by Dave Bruskas

A Father’s Guide to Blessing His Children by David Michael

A Father’s Ministry of Prayer by Paul Sailhamer

6 Ways Fathers Pursue Christ in Their Fatherhood by Scott Thomas

Honoring Our Fathers and Mothers in Old Age by Russell Moore

Dads and Daughters by John Piper

Dads and Disabilities by Justin Taylor

Ten Tips for Fathers by Wayne Stocks

Pastor Dad by Mark Driscoll

Raising Our Boys to be Real Men by Doug Wolter

Dads Set the Temperature in the Home by Doug Wolter

The Glory of Bench Warming: Fathers, Sons, Playing Time and Leadership by David Prince

A Guide to Biblical Manhood by Randy Stinson and Dan Dumas looks to be a great resource to read through with the men of your church. Stinson and Dumas outline the essentials of what it means to be a godly husband, a godly father, and godly leader in a short, readable and practical format. It’s clear that their aim is that you would read this book and then lead with your actions.

Dumas says, “In your marriage, don’t go home and say, ‘Honey, things are going to be different around here. Here are five things I’m gonna start doing.’” Just lead. Don’t announce it. At the first opportunity you get, just do it. Let her discover it. The last thing you want to do is over-promise and under-deliver.”

Get the book here for less than $5.

Timothy Witmer from his book, Shepherd Leader:

What better way to multiply the personal ministry of the word than by equipping dads to pray and read the Scriptures with their families.  Note that Baxter suggests that we “give them an example.”  How many of our families would be well fed if we merely gave some simple suggestions to their shepherds?

“Get masters of families to do their duty, and they will not only spare you a great deal of labour, but will much further the success of your labours.  If a captain can get the officers under him to do their duty, he may rule the soldiers with much less trouble, than if all lay upon his own shoulders.  You are not like to see any general reformation, till you procure family reformation” (RichardBaxter, Reformed Pastor (1656; repr., Carslisle, PA: Banner of Truth, 1997), 102).

In doing this you are not only multiplying the ministry of the Word among your people but helping fathers fulfill their God-given responsibilities.  Undoubtedly, many elders will have to repent of their neglecting this duty themselves in order to proceed with a clear conscience.  This is progress, too, and a great place to start!

(HT: Jared Kennedy)

Dave Bruskas shares two paths he is prone to walk towards in provoking his four girls:

Perfectionism

I desperately want my girls to become mature Christian women. I want them to be molded into women who think, feel, act, and speak like Jesus.

Yet I provoke my girls to discouragement when I expect them to be perfect now, in their own strength, by doing more or trying harder.

Passivism

The overcorrection to perfectionism is passivism. Passivism has the fatalistic attitude, “Because Jesus must change my child’s heart, there is nothing I can do but pray and watch and hope for the best.” This error completely ignores the charge to dads regarding their children in Ephesians 6:4,“Bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.”

Read the whole thing …

About a year ago, I interviewed my friend, Jonathan Dodson, about his book, Fight Clubs: Gospel-Centered Discipleship.  Since then he’s started a website with resources for you to learn more about how you can start gospel-centered accountability groups in your church.  Recently, he spoke at Brent Thomas’ church (another friend of mine) about this topic.

He reminds us to 1) Know our Sin, 2) Fight our Sin and 3) Trust our Savior.  I encourage you to listen.

Other resources you may be interested in:

Starting Fight Clubs:

• How to Start Fight Clubs
• How Fight Clubs Work
• How to Promote Fight Clubs
• What other Churches are using Fight Clubs?

Only a handful of people have come into my life and impacted me up close.  Yes, I can point to pastors like John Piper and C.J. Mahaney who have had a profound influence on my life from afar.  But only a few have invested their lives into my life becoming like a father to me in the gospel (1 Cor. 4:15).  One of those men is Jim Luebe. 

I met Jim as a college student at the University of Northern Iowa.  As a relatively new believer in Christ, he took an interest in me and saw in me the potential for leadership.  I remember sitting down with him one day and him turning to Joshua 1:9 which says, “Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous!  Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”  He looked at me and said that God had called me to lead just like Joshua.  So I needed to be strong and courageous knowing that He would be with me!  Hearing those words propelled me to take action and be the man God made me to be. 

Jim also started a small group bible study with me and 3 other guys.  I think he affectionately called us “The Four Horsemen.”  We met in the mornings on campus and studied through different books of the Bible.  We prayed together and were accountable to each other.  We also spent time with him in his home.  Jim intentionally let us see into his life, his marriage, his struggles, and even his sin.  But his heart was not mainly that we know him; he wanted us to know Christ!  Specifically, he wanted me to know the basics of living for Christ – The Word, Prayer, Fellowship, and Witnessing.  But he didn’t just teach these things, he lived them out.  He never asked me to do anything he hadn’t done first — and that principle of leadership has stuck with me.  Jim is also a man of vision.  And he gave me opportunities to lead with vision.  Most older guys don’t give younger guys the freedom to fail.  Jim did.  And in doing so, I learned to dream big and believe God could do great things — more than I could ask or think (Eph. 3:20). 

And I’d be remiss to not mention how Jim showed me the importance of family.  He loves his wife and his boys.  I didn’t think about that very much as a college student, but now I do, having been married for 12 years with 3 kids of my own.  Little did he know that he was giving me a model of how to put my wife and kids first in the midst of ministry.

Some of you know that Jim is now the Collegiate Director for the U.S. Navigators.  He and his sweet wife (Beth) continue to invest their lives into college students with a desire that they might become lifelong laborers in Christ’s kingdom.  Sometimes I can still hear Jim’s distinct voice in the back of my mind telling me about a friend of his that he described as “a faithful laborer over time.”

Yes, only a handful of people come into our lives and impact us up close.  Jim Luebe is one of those people for me.  And my prayer is that I would be that for others in my life and ministry.

*Read this article he wrote to collegiate grads about true success in college ministry

From the very beginning, man has tried to cover his own sin and it hasn’t worked.  Like a little kid standing in the middle of the room covering his eyes, we think no one will see us.  But we’re fooling ourselves.  We can’t cover our sin.  Only God can cover our sin and make us secure in Christ.  And because he loves us, he comes after us in our rebellion and confronts us with our sin so we would confess it and continue no longer in it.  His goal is that you would be broken before him and out of this heart that’s been humbled, tell of his mercy and grace. 

This was the story of David.  And it’s our story too if we choose to respond the way David did when God came running after him.  This past Sunday I preached from 2 Samuel 12:1-15 to remind us that we cannot cover up our sin – only God can cover it with His grace.

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My message came on the heels of my good friend Lisle‘s message on 2 Samuel 11 where he reminded us of the reality of David’s sin and that if it can happen to David, it can happen to any of us.  I encourage you to listen to his message as well.

This was my favorite part of the Together for the Gospel Conference. A group of humble men calling out to God for help to heal a fellow brother in need. What a great example. We need more of this as men. Not just for physical healing, but for spiritual healing as well (James 5:16).

Photo courtesy of Daniel Perez Jr.

(HT: JT)