Our Fathers Have Told Us

We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old. Psalm 44:1

First, let me start by saying, “Happy Father’s Day.” I’m grateful for my father. I hope you are grateful for your father as well!

A father has the great responsibility and honor of pointing their children to God.

Psalms 44:1 causes me to contemplate three powerful truths about the importance of fathers testifying about God to their children. They are as follows:

1. A father should experience God.

We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old. Psalm 44:1

There’s something powerful about sharing a personal experience. Every father should have a pursuit of God presently going on in their lives. Only then will a father realize the mighty acts of God in their individual pursuits of God. After that, a father can share with others what God has done for them in their generation. Therefore, the next generation will be encouraged to pursue God.

Are you seeking God? Do you have experiences where you know God has blessed, provided, answered, or moved on your behalf in some awesome way? If so, move on to the next point. If not, pause and pray for a revival in your pursuit of God.

2. A father should pass down His “God experiences” to his children.

We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old. Psalm 44:1

Once a father has experienced God’s wonderful works among the children of men, a father should take opportunities to spread the testimonies of God to his children.

Why would we withhold the testimonies of God’s goodness from those most influenced by us? Why would we close our lips to sharing life changing advice?

God works mightily in big ways and small ways. His works drive us to the state of awe and new levels of commitment.

Wouldn’t it be amazing for our children to catch the same fervor and zeal for our Lord as the fervor and zeal we obtained when God did something for us?

If you have testimonies of God’s goodness in your life, pass those down to your children.

Set the fairy tale books aside for a bit and learn to rejoice with your children about the reality of God’s goodness in your life. You never know how much this will influence them toward Christ!

3. A father’s children should hear of the goodness of God enough that they can repeat the stories.

We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old. Psalm 44:1

It intrigues me that the human penman was so influenced by the stories rehearsed to him that he could turn around and pray for God to work in those same ways. The testimonies had be consistently passed down. At some point, a father’s child wrapped his mind around the gravity of the stories that were passed down to him. He was impacted to such a degree that the stories challenged him to seek God for the same GOD to reveal Himself just like in the stories that were passed down.

We all have heard stories over and over again from our parents. Sometimes, children’s eyes “roll” as parents repeat stories they have heard hundred’s of times. But…

…we grow older. Those stories fade over the course of time…we then begin to cherish the memories of those stories to the extent that we find ourselves asking to hear the same stories over again. Why? We don’t want to forget them. Those stories are part of our makeup, part of who we are, and they should be precious to us.

One day, I won’t be able to visit my loved ones anymore. The stories that once occupied family times will fade into history and become a blur. I want to pass down the stories of my family’s past for the next generation to embrace-especially the spiritual stories.

Our verse for today makes me question what “God things” have I experienced that I should pass down to those around me.

I want to pass down the stories of God’s working so my children can come to the point of craving the very same God to do the very same things in their generation. I want my children to know God’s working through them and around them. I want my children to pass down to their children, “the wonderful acts of God.”

It’s crazy to think, but valid to think, that my children could stop their pursuit of God because I simply keep my mouth shut about what God has done for me. God forbid that I would silence the testimonies of God from flowing from theses lips!

May God be glorified through working His working among us, and may He be glorified as we then pass down the testimonies of God to our children.

We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old. Psalm 44:1

Justyn Smith — aheartforrevival.com