The Father Crisis

​"Any man can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a dad."  Can we give an Amen to this truth written by Anne Geddes?  Fathers are so important that there is an organization called the National Fatherhood Initiative whose vision is for every child to grow up with an involved, responsible, and committed father.  They tell us this:  "Underlying many of society's most pressing challenges is a lack of father involvement in their children's lives."  According to the U. S. Census Bureau, one in four children live without a father in their home.  There are countless other children who live with a father figure who is physically present but emotionally absent.  Their fathers are in their lives but not a part of it so that the relationships are toxic.
 
Statistics put out by the U. S. Census Bureau on our fatherless generation are extremely concerning. Children in this situation are at a four times greater risk of living in poverty and are two times more likely to drop out of high school.  These children are more likely to suffer from abuse and neglect, to abuse drugs and alcohol, to become behavioral problems, to commit a crime and to go to prison.  Daughters are seven times more likely to become pregnant as teens.  Comments from wounded, fatherless individuals found on the Internet are telling.  Here are a few of the milder ones:  "I tell people I don't know my father, because I am afraid to say that he jumps in and out of my life when he wants...And it hurts."  "No matter how old you get, the hole in your heart created by your father's absence still aches—especially on Father's Day."  "My father was a Christian, but he had no time for me."
 
Every person was made for love.  A father, as the head of a family, should be displaying unconditional love, understanding, support, protection, encouragement, guidance, and friendship.  He should be taking time to listen to his children and to communicate with them.  Sons need a role model while daughters need an example of how their future husband should treat them.  It seems that absence of a father figure in homes has become a generational issue and breeds children who are angry, fearful, anxious, and unforgiving.  This crisis of children with hardened hearts offers the demonic realm a playground from which to operate.  Our fatherless generation needs someone to stand in the gap for them.  That is why we must point these brokenhearted individuals to their Father in heaven.  Here are some of the descriptions of our Heavenly Father from the Bible.

• Psalm 103:13-14 - "As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him; for He knows how we are formed, He remembers that we are dust."
• Psalm 68:5-6 - "A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling.  God sets the lonely in families, He leads the prisoners with singing."
• 1 Corinthians 1:3 - "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort."
• 1 John 3:1 - "See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!  And that is what we are!"

 
Father God stands ready to save us from our sorrow.  "The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion." (Psalm 116:5)  When Jesus came to earth, He had the audacity to call God “Father.”   The religious leaders of the day did not comprehend that their greatest need was for a father who loved and cared for them.  To be good leaders, they needed to be totally dependent upon God.  Even in the model prayer that Jesus taught, we are told to begin by saying, "Our Father in heaven."  As we come to our Father in heaven, we can rest assured that He will provide for our daily needs.
 
What part can we play in presenting our heavenly Father to those on earth?  We must acknowledge that we are totally dependent on Father God for every need and ask Him to stand in the gap if we have an earthly father who has not demonstrated God's qualities for a father.  We must be ready to forgive our earthly fathers where they have fallen.  We must pray for inadequate fathers and those who have been wounded by them.  For those of us who have or had godly fathers who have blessed us, we should thank them and thank God for them.  Let's walk in such a way that our lives reflect Father God's characteristics. Finally, if you are a father, evaluate your relationship with your children and look to Father God to help you to be His representative on earth.