A couple of days ago, I was thinking about Father’s Day while praying for my crew.
Father’s Day is kind of a downer when a father is absent, due to death, separation, divorce, incarceration, deployment–there are so many different reasons a father may not be present on Father’s Day.
Knowing my kids were disappointed to not be visiting their Father on Father’s day led to me praying a bit harder for them–for their tender hearts and incredible forgiving spirits. This led me to wanting to do something amazing for them this Father’s Day.
So…after brainstorming awhile…I’ve developed a new holiday that will now be annually celebrated in the Duffer Household. The title of this new holiday is MAN Day!
The goal of this day is to celebrate the “men” my boys have become and the way they have stepped up to the plate in the absence of their father. Several things fall to them now, without a father’s help or teaching. They’ve learned to mow the yard and weed eat it so that it looks just as good as everyone else’s. Tim’s had to do numerous repairs on the house, the car and has taken on all of the cooking and grocery shopping. Mark has fallen into the role of “protector” of his sisters—watching out for them, making sure the doors are locked (when we had never locked them before) and keeping a “weapon” by his bedside in case an intruder comes in. They do not whine, pout or demand their way. Instead they are understanding of the situation we are in, and act very maturely about it.
Can you tell how proud I am of them? 🙂
I can’t leave out Keli’s boyfriend, Jimmy. He’s become part of this Odd Duck Crazy Family–and helps out by doing some minor car repair on our vehicles, as well as giving attention to each of Keli’s siblings. He’s a good guy and I’m proud of him as well.
So, what will MAN Day consist of?
First, the MEN get to choose where they want to eat out at after church. Lunch is on me (usually if we eat out on Sunday, Tim and Mark pay for their own because they are working mowing lawns). And then—-this couldn’t be more perfectly timed—we’re all going to go to the movies to watch “Man of Steel”, the new SuperMan movie. To top the day off, there will be a trip to Sweet Frog.
We’re going to have an amazing day. I can’t wait.
Psalm 68:5 says:
Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.
While my children are not technically fatherless, they are indeed to a large degree “fatherless”. And I am not a widow, but divorce and incarceration has definitely left me in a similar state of widowhood, although with great shame.
But I can truly, truly say that God has been Father to my children. I can truly, truly say that He has been my protector. My deliverer. My defender. He has even been my Father, to whom I am so grateful. He longs to be a Father to us all, if we will only believe and allow Him to do so.
I’ve posted the following video twice before, but I’m posting it here again, in case you’ve missed it. It is a clear picture of what God has done for me, and what God can do for you. It’s titled The Prodigal. I can barely watch it without it messing me up, because it is the story of my life. I was a rebel, and now I am His child, and He is my Father. And the Father of my children. Below this video is another video of the song “Defender”, which also plainly spells out our lives in detail, thanks to our Almighty Father.
sara beth fentress says
I love you, and I am so proud of you!!