Father’s Day
Sunday, June 15, 2025
The Father’s Love
Welcome! Happy Father’s Day!
What a special day to honor all our dads and those who have been a great influence on your lives. And to give thanks to our eternal Father who is ever present and loving, as we invite Him into our hearts.
Much like Mother’s Day, this day can come with mixed emotions, and let’s take a moment to honor and remember our beloved dads who have passed on but our held closely in our hearts. May their legacies and imprint of love be forever upon you.
We also know that not everyone had a dad who was present and engaged in their lives. in today’s culture, we see this more and more in certain areas and people groups- biological fathers who opt out, and mothers are left to shoulder the burden of two roles they were never meant to carry. Or grandparents step in and help raise children who should be loved and provided for by a father who is engaged and present.
Or maybe your father was physically present but emotionally distant and seemed far off, disconnected from you and your interests and cares. Maybe your dad was physically here but battling his demons and became harsh or abusive when you were around. It seemed like you couldn’t do anything right. I want to tell you, it wasn’t you-don’t carry that your whole life. Your dad had his wounds that were never tended to, and his pain got the better of him-but you were not the reason for his pain or his hurtful behavior. He needed a Savior who could rescue him and bring him out of that darkness, and praise God, some men who are deeply troubled find their hope in Jesus and can begin to heal. Some don’t, and that is never on you.
Father wounds run very deep and if you have lived through this, I am so very sorry, but I am also rejoicing because you are here, for the love of your heavenly Father is drawing you to His heart and it is His love that can heal those deep wounds, as you let Him in. He is always present, always engaged, always caring about the details of your life, and will never leave or forsake you.
Some had the love of a wonderful father, but he was taken far too soon from you, and there are deep hurts in that also, and I pray the love he poured into you while he was here will remain strong within you. I pray you, too, will lean into the Father’s love that remains and is eternally offered to you.
Some of you have wonderful fathers, and what a treasure and gift. They model the love of our heavenly Father and offer steadfast support, no matter what your age- you know they will be there. Some had the gift of a dad who comes into their life who is not their biological father, but the love and care are just the same, if not more. They chose to take the role of dad and love a child, and their influence is equally and sometimes greater in the life of those children than from a biological parent.
So today we rejoice in the fathers who have embraced this call to fatherhood -of which we have many right in our church family- and understand the great responsibility and influence they have to shape a child’s life, to help them feel secure in who they are, to keep them safe, and to guide them into great purpose as a child of God. Today we also rejoice in our Heavenly Father who does this for all His children and calls us His own, His beloved, and made a way for us to be with Him, even now, forever.
Call to Worship: Come let us praise God, who is a father to the fatherless and a defender of all who need protection. He is our refuge, our strength, and a very present help in times of trouble.
Let us give thanks for His love and mercy and for the blessings of fatherhood in all its forms. We are so thankful for the gift of those who choose to embrace the role of dad and father.
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen. Romans 8
Praise Songs
Intro: What do you think of when you think of dads? The fixers right? Some might be mechanically able to fix anything, some can repair any toy that breaks, some can fix all things in the house, some can fix a problem by offering a great solution, some can fix a broken heart with a hug or an encouraging word, some can fix a tense atmosphere by offering a joke. Whatever their talents, we often look to our dads as the one who will help “fix” whatever that situation requires. Why do we turn to them?
Because we trust them and they have proven trustworthy in previous times of need. We have seen what they can do and ideas that seem to come out of nowhere and the magic they do with duct tape, and we’re left in awe at how something that once seemed impossible to recover from is now fixed, good as new, maybe even with a few enhancements knowing some our dads.
Dads, we may tease and roll our eyes at you from time to time, but these moments are truly precious and so very important to us all-because we know you are always there and always on the ready to help.
This is who our Father in Heaven is, also times infinity. As great as you all are, dads, you do have limits and finite talents. This is where it behooves you to draw from the wisdom and power of your Heavenly Father to assist you in best fathering the children gifting to you-for His power is infinite and He knows exactly how to respond to the moody teenager whose mouth is telling you to go away, but whose heart is saying, I need you. Our Father in Heaven is used to this-it’s how we all treat Him at times-we go from temperamental toddlers throwing a fit when we don’t get our way, to moody teenagers who want to try all the adventures and fun, but have all these emotions rising up we don’t know how to deal with-we want to be independent but we still want our parents’ help and support but we don’t want to let them know we do… to the prodigal child who ups and leaves home swearing they don’t want anything to do with their parents any more. Yep our Father in Heaven has seen it all, and yet HIs love is unfailing, steadfast, and patient. Dads lean into this love no matter what season of parenting you are in-you need Him and remember no matter how old you grow, you are still His child whom He loves. And like you being on the ready to help your children, so is the Father always on the ready to help you navigate fatherhood. He models it in His love for you.
So today, on Father’s Day, let’s look at a Psalm that perfectly sums up the love of our Heavenly Father and why we can trust in Him. Because like our children who trust in us, or as you trusted in your dad, when we choose to trust in the Father, we open the door for His love to flow freely in our lives and in that love, we walk in His grace, peace, and joy for every chapter of this life we are given.
Psalm 121
I lift up my eyes to the mountains- where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip- he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord watches over you- the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all harm- he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.
Amen.
How many see some similarities in how dads care for their children in this psalm? Your presence and love is profoundly important in the life of your child.
How many remember these truths about who our God and Heavenly Father is?
Let’s look more closely at the roles of Father God.
- He is our Infinite Helper.
Psalm 28:6-7 Praise be to the Lord, for He has heard my cry for mercy. The Lord is my strength and my shield, my heart trusts in Him, and He helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise Him.
We must choose to see God in this light-as our infinite helper-meaning all things big and small, He is delighted and on the ready to help us!
So I love ( not really) how, when I am about to preach on a certain truth and topic, life has a way of allowing me to put said truth into practice. I had a busy week this week with several things taking me away from computer time each day- and the week was drawing to an end, and I know I need to finish this sermon, and I’m thinking, no problem I have all afternoon Friday to finish what was left. Only to come back home to find my computer has checked out permanently from being my helper and said I’m done- I hit my limit, no more. That’s not nice on a Friday afternoon. Plus, I had my work saved on my desktop-not Google Drive- I know…. Now is not the time to judge me, but I can’t access my desktop any longer. So…. frustration, concern, overwhelm begin to rise up, and I remember no God, you are my helper-you have always been and never failed me yet- I’ll trust you and we’ll work through it. So we had plans to go to the lake house. I headed up there with the dogs in the evening, hoping my hubby, who is our fix-it guy in our house, could think of something. I turn on the radio and start singing praise songs to God-because I know that will help, and I will shift my worry to just worshiping Him, and my trust will be strengthened. I’m feeling better, calmer, hopeful, and about 4 miles from the lake house. Sophie got herself so worked out on our drive that she pukes all over my lap- twice. Thanks Sophie, for that- now I have this issue and stink like puke.
I called it a night and managed to enjoy a bit of time outside, even with the windstorm that was rushing through our place. I went to bed, woke up refreshed, and knew God would help me. I went back home and used Riley’s computer, and He and I just prepared it together. Not my timing, not my way, but when I surrendered to trusting Him instead of being frustrated and overwhelmed, as always, the words just flowed. The solution came. His help was there as He always is.
Now I could have let this ruin my whole weekend, and there were moments I was beginning to feel that rise up, but I know I don’t need to give in to that, and I know My Father who loves me does not want me going off the rails, bitter, or being miserable. As I said, when I am preaching on a topic, there is almost always an opportunity to practice it. This was mine. I didn’t pass 100% immediately, but I remembered who He is, My infinite Helper, and it doesn’t need to be my way to still accomplish His purposes. Do you hear this today?
What in your life could you lean on your Father’s help for, and remember He is your infinite helper? How many times do you allow yourself to go off the rails first before you come back to Him? How many times do you allow bitterness or frustration to build up before you remember God is your helper and you simply need to surrender it from being your way and ask for His help? He will always help, and we need to give Him the reins to help as He knows best.
Let us heed the wise words of the prophet Jeremiah:
Jeremiah 32:17 Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.
He simplifies all things as we come to Him for help.
2) God is our Vigilant Guardian
Psalm 121:3-4 He will not let your foot slip-he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
Do you remember and choose to see Father God as your personal guardian, always watching over you, always keeping you safe in His care.
Think of our earthly dads with smaller children- when you go on hikes or are climbing up something, Dad will hold on to them, with a firm grasp and supporting arm, to keep them from slipping and falling.
This is the same thing our Father in heaven does for us.
Psalm 34:7 The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.
I love this psalm and picture. Our God encamps around the righteous, around His children-meaning His presence is all around us. He is on watch for the evil one trying to come near us, and He stands on guard ready to battle on our behalf. We can sleep soundly knowing our Father never slumbers and is ever watching over us. We can truly rest when we come into His presence and let down our guard, for we know our Father is keeping watch over us.
Those who live through trauma have a very hard time feeling secure and able to truly rest, for they have their fight or flight in hyper mode at all times-for safety and survival. This is not sustainable without great damage being done to our minds and bodies. We aren’t meant to live in this manner 24/7. We have to find a place to feel safe. Our Father is our safe place because His Word tells us being on guard is His role, as our Father, not ours. We can release that which was never ours to bear and give it to the One who is able remain on guard at all times.
Why does He do it? To strengthen the hearts of His children.
2 Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.
He loves us and as our Father, He wants to strengthen and encourage us for this life He has given us-to live it well-to live it to the full-to live in the purpose He has for us. So He keeps watch; He battles on our behalf against evil; and He allows us to rest in the shadow of His wings so we can persevere in faith.
- Our God is our Refuge and Comfort
What does it mean for you to truly be able to find a place of refuge? If you have never had it, I imagine it’s everything, priceless to finally close your eyes and lay your head down and sleep peacefully.
Our soldiers here know what that is like. Those who came from troubled homes know what that is like to finally feel safe and secure.
But even if we have been safe physically, our spirit, too, needs a safe place to rest and be comforted. We can only find that in the arms of our loving Father. That is also priceless once we find it.
Psalm 63:7-8
Because you’ve always stood up for me, I’m free to run and play. I hold on to you for dear life, and you hold me steady as a post.
We witness this first hand with the children at the Ark, for the first time in their lives, as they settle into that community and that family- a steadfast family that is present, loving, has structure, truth, and patient guidance- we see them running and playing-feeling free. It’s a beautiful picture because there is so much to be said for when we feel free to run and play. This is what our Father offers us when we give Him our hearts and allow His love to guide us.
Allow God the Father to be your refuge and comfort; your safe place so you too can live this life free and full of the joy of the Lord!
Conclusion: Where does our help come from? Our help comes from our Heavenly Father, who watches over us, provides, comforts, shields, protects, and guides us to still waters. Turn to and trust in your Father who loves you.
Let’s pray.
Offering:
Let’s acknowledge our Father as our helper in every way and honor His great name and authority by saying the Lord’s Prayer together.
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father who art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen.
Abra would like to share a bit from camp.
Prayers:
Blessing for dads:
Lord God, Heavenly Father, we ask for you to fill all dads linked to the children and grandchildren of this church body with Your loving presence, Your wisdom, Your patience, Your courage, and truth. Protect them all Lord, and watch over their coming and going all the days of their lives. Keep them safe in Your care. Lord draw their hearts unto You and help them Holy Spirit, to trust in and look to the Father as their guide and example to follow. Help them to know they are made to walk with You, Father God, and were never meant to bear this role of fatherhood on their own. Let them bring big and small issues to You and know, like they so often do, You delight in fixing things for them and welcome their cry for help. Let each father experience great fulfillment in their roles and joy in watching their children grow into all You have created them to be. Lord, those who are facing challenging situations right now, we ask for Your divine grace, mercy, love, and strength to guide them through this time. Encourage their hearts and remind them You are there with them. May Your fruit be evident in each one- that of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. May they know they are loved and greatly appreciated. We thank You for these fathers and their influence on our lives. Bless them mightily. In Jesus’ name.
Gifts for dads
Final Song
Final Blessing Peace be to all the brothers and sisters, and the love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with a love without end.
