Regardless of our variety of life experiences, there is one thing for sure. We have each had an experience of being a child and being in need. Some of us may have had a reasonably good childhood, others not so much.
Regardless of whether we feel good or bad about our parents, we were children and what we were exposed to and what we experienced molded us.  We are a product of our life.  In the next few weeks we are going to rewind the clock a bit and engage as a child with the perfect father.

What is your thoughts and impressions of your childhood?

As men, we get an additional challenge in this journey of life.  We get the opportunity to be men.  That wonderful privilege comes by default in our society.  There are expectations on men that were not always our idea.  Yet when put in the situation, we either fake it or make it.  Here is an example, hypothetical, fictitious story.

Been there, done that

It was a typical day in my life when I had to drive my daughter to the store to get some things. As we pulled out of the driveway and headed in the general direction, we did not get more than about 3 blocks from the house and the car started jerking and lunging.  A load squeal was beginning to resonate from under the hood and it was getting louder and louder.

In the middle of the drama, all kinds of things were racing through my mind. I went immediately into a consciousness of blame and attack. What did she do to the car? What did not I not do?  Then when the time came, the car stalled and we were on the side of the road.

It was probably not intended to have no ill intention, but when I glanced over to my daughter in the passenger seat, she had that tilted-head look of impatience. Like “dad, hurry up and fix it”. Now I worked on some cars as a kid and even did some tune-ups, but now all these electronics just baffle me. I could probably change the oil, but that has been done for years now by the lube shops.

Not wanting to hurt her feelings, or disappoint her, I flung the door open and went right at it. I swung around the front of the vehicle and found the latch and got the hood opened with the actions of a pictured veteran.  I had the hood open and stick thing propped up and now to get on to business.

Now what? tap a couple things, shake some hoses and see if anything falls off.  Now, realistically, if something did fall off, I am not sure I would know how to put it back on.

Have you ever been there? Fake it or make it…

What are some things you had to learn on your own? (how to balance a checkbook? How to tie a tie? How to break up in a relationship in a healthy way? How to set boundaries with family and friends? Change a tire? 

The painful truth is that everyone one of us have had a need that our earthly father was not able to show us, to teach us. It is not possible and if it was, then we would not need God. In our lives, many of the challenges in our life are for training us, for growing us and for building a reliance on God that no one else can fulfill.

In the coming weeks we will have a great opportunity to understand better the journey we are on; where we have been; what we have gone through; the stages we will continue to go through and the role we play in others lives as well as their role in our lives.

Invest in Yourself

We will only get out of this study what we put into it. For many, the whole Ransomed Heart thing is common, we have heard, looked at it and turned it around in our hand numerous times, but the value still has potential in our lives today.  We are not the men we used to be. We know more about ourselves now than we ever have. Let’s take the journey with seriousness.

• Get the book
• Download the study guide
• Follow the guidelines
  • Watch the video
  • Read the assignment
  • Work the study guide (reading and questions)

Instructions

• Review overview plans & watch video
  http://wildmenofgod.com/fathered-by-god/
• Read: chapter 1
• Study Guide: pages 1-19
• Stay connected during the week, bouncing thoughts and ideas off of each other. Encourage one another. Spur one another on. Let Father God come into your life.

Restrictions

• Don’t wait until late in the week to get started
  • Read the chapter first, then do the questions
• Don’t skip the reading
  • The study guide will reference the reading. If you don’t read the material, you will then spend more time going back to the book and searching for the section and understanding the question. Save yourself time, read the assignment.
  • There is also reading in the study guide that corresponds with the chapter reading. Don’t skip it, it is important.
• Don’t wait until Friday
  • There is a lot to be done. Let God work with you.
  • Read the chapter as soon as possible
  • Read a couple questions each day and answer along the way. Sometimes read the question(s) in the morning and ponder throughout the day and answer at night time.

Don’t give up

You are worth so much more than felt pressure of a bible study. If challenges come your way, do what you can. You will get valuable insights and wisdom by going through this study.

³ We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. ⁴ And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. ⁵ And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. – Romans 5:3-5 NLT

If you get behind, get caught up. If it gets overwhelming, get aligned with where we are at (see outline on the overview page).  Contact one of the other guys and review during the week.

Some of us will hit a rock or two while digging. Don’t quit, see it as a treasure, as we clean our fields for a good sowing for an anticipated harvest to come.