The sitcom “Father Knows Best” ran from 1954 to May of 1960. It was described as a program much like a Norman Rockwell painting. It was based on a middle-class American family with a father, mother, two teenaged boys and one pre-teen daughter. Although the Anderson family experienced the same issues of a typical family with teenagers and a pre-teen, this fictional family was a reminder of what a family could be like.
In the TV series, Jim Anderson was the father and insurance salesman who always managed to have time for his family. He was a wise and loving father who always knew what was best for his family. Jim was a strong character and his children felt comfortable sharing the concerns of their lives with him.
Does Father Still Know Best?
Since “Father Knows Best” last aired, other great family sitcoms have come along reflecting similar values. (I know I’m giving away my age by referencing the Golden Age in television.) As I look back at these shows, there was always a respect for the father in each family. Today, we live in a time when it is clear that we fathers don’t always know what is best. As hard as we may try, our families do not always bond as closely as the families of these sitcoms. We don’t always have the wise counsel of Jim Anderson; and even when we do, we do not always have children with receptive ears!
For most men, being the head of our families is not always that simple. We sometimes feel the hurts and pains of our broken families and have no idea how to put them together again. Like in the childhood story of Humpty Dumpty, we feel that all the king’s horses and all the king’s men could not put our families together again.
Fragmented Families
Men, I want to tell you how you can move towards picking up the broken pieces in your family. Hope begins with our relationship with our Heavenly Father.
Some of you may not have had role models to show you what a good father is like. You may have read self-help and parenting books, but somehow your family still feels broken. I still believe there is hope. The king’s horses and men may have helpful ideas, but 1 John 3:1 reminds us the King of Kings can help us put our fragmented families back together.
John said, “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” (1 John 3:1) He is a Father who loves us and our families more than we can ever love them. When we allow Him to be our Father, we find the awesome power of His love for us as He adopts us as His children forever!
Hope in Adoption
This adoption begins when we put our trust in Jesus as our Savior. John said, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” (John 1:12) Our children may never say about us, “Father knows best”; but if we trust in Him, He can help put the broken pieces of our relationship back together.
Maybe you are feeling that your family is too broken to be put together. Maybe you are even saying to yourself, “I’m too broken to be put together!” We all fall in this category, but our God specializes in those things that seem impossible. Does it happen overnight? Not always, sometimes the changes are gradual. But He promises to be there with us during the process. In the concerns of this life, we can rest assured that He promises never to leave or forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5)
God’s amazing grace can transform your life and your situation. His grace can make this Father’s Day your best Father’s Day yet.
Article by Dr. L.W. Edwards
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