An All-The-Time Job

"Dad! Dad! Dad! Daddy!" One day in the car I had heard the name "Dad" so many times that I raised my voice and said, "I'm changing my name! For the next hour my name is not Dad!"

My young children were stunned. After a moment of silence, one of them asked, "So what is your name?"

"I'm not going to tell you!" I responded, still a bit frustrated.

That worked for about another minute, and that was about all the break I had.

Being a God-honoring Dad is an all-the-time job. We don't get to clock out and then go do something else. We're "on the clock" 24/7.

Deuteronomy 6:7 tells us a little about the all-the-time nature of parenting, especially how we are to teach the words of God to our children:

"You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise."

That sounds like "all the time" to me. We are always working; we are always on call. This is God's divine assignment to parents. Do you know why? It's because our children learn not only by the things we say, but by the lives we live. These words of Scripture follow two verses (Deuteronomy 6:5-6) that put the command into a clearer context:

"You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart."

So it's not just instructing them all the time - we're not just telling them what to do. Yes, we're always teaching, but even more we're teaching them by our lives. We are teaching by the example we set, by the way we love the Lord and live for Him. 

Little eyes and ears always see and hear. When we're at work, our children know that we are dedicated to our jobs, and that working hard is a way we honor God. When we are sleeping, our children learn that God intends for us to take times of rest. As we worship with our families in church, our children learn how to worship. And we cannot be fooled: even little sins we think are "hidden" may still be noticed and emulated by our children.

Being a God-honoring Dad is an all-the-time job. But we also have an all-the-time Heavenly Father to Whom we can turn for help as we teach our children by word and by example.