The Parent's Guide To Surviving Summer Break

The Parent’s Guide To Surviving Summer Break

Psalm 127

June 15, 2008 FATHER’S DAY Chester FBC Dr. Mike Fogerson

Introduction:

A "I’m Watching You Dad" Video (SermonSpice.com)

B Tonight, 40% of all American children will to sleep in a house in which their fathers do not live.

1 Before the age of 18, more than 50% of our children will spend a significant portion of their childhood living apart from their fathers.

2 A generation ago, an American child could reasonably expect to grow up with a dad. Today, an American child can reasonably expect not to.

3 Stop worrying about spotted-owl, whales, seals . . . The Father who lives at home is a rarer species than any of those!

B Psalm 127

1 Authorship (David or Solomon)

a Both were fathers.

b Both had children that didn’t always do the right thing . . . got on their nerves.

2 In this short chapter, I believe there are tips to not only surviving Summer Break but also tips on how to be thriving as a father, mother.

C Let’s look at two tips that can help us survive the summer and thrive the rest of the year as parents.

I The first tip for parents to survive summer break is . . .Balance, Balance, Balance.

A David & Solomon knew of the enormous responsibility of having people depending on them. (Millions, kingdom, feed, protected)

1 They were charged as kings to provide for their folks.

a Built homes, cities, walls, infrastructure, temple (Solomon.)

b Some of the greatest structures of antiquity.

2 They knew that whatever they built had to be protected.

a (cf. Neh. 4.17-18) Rebuilding of the walls of Zion. (Trowel in hand/ sword on side)

b The fathers (David/Solomon) would put watchmen on the walls to . . .

aa Sound the alarm when strangers/enemy approached the city.

bb Kept watch and they prayed.

3 Like all good dads, they knew about hard work (Stay late, go in early)

a The secret of their success WAS NOT on being good builders, planners, protectors, providers, or hard workers.

b The secret of their success WAS balance!

c Building house, Protecting, Hard Work . . . ARE GOOD THINGS, but w/o God they are all hallow. ( . . . in vain. . .)

B We have been conned into thinking that if we have a nice house, provide for our family, work long hours that we are successful/prosperous. WRONG!

1 We can have all these things but if we do not have God’s blessing then it’s all in vain.

a vain means worthless, empty, failure. (Gain the whole world and loss your soul?)

b Cromwell said, "Trust God and keep your powder dry." BALANCE

aa There is nothing wrong with hard work, planning, nice things.

bb If God is not in our hard work, planning, nice things . . . in vain.

c Work while trusting God, and also rest while trusting Him.

2 We must focus all that we are/turn ourselves over into loving God and it is then that the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.

a God will even bless that person in their sleep!

b Then building our home, protecting our family, working hard becomes a ministry unto God.

c We may grow tired in doing the Lord’s work but we’ll not grow tired of doing it!

C I came home from the woods and covered with cockle burs, twigs, etc. Wearing camo face paint, pretty dirty.

1 Took them out sometime later, and they started asking when are they going to put on those "things?" Those little things all over our cloths?

a What about the make up? Okay. Camoed them up.

b At the end of our adventure, they asked, "When did you put those things on us, dad?" Those things like you wear. Thanks dad." Cockle burs.

2 It was then I realized that what ever I do I better be on guard, balanced.

a Little eyes are watching to see how I handle things.

b You’ve got little eyes, ears picking up everything . . . build on God!

ts. Balance keeping your powder dry and trusting God, but remember the second tip.

II The second tip is to remember your summer breaks are numbered.

A The Psalmist knew that all their gorgeous palaces, enormous wealth, land was nothing if there was no one to leave it to, pass down/on.

1 In the Hebrew text, Son is Ben, Daughter is Bath, House is Beith, and all of these come from the root word Banah, which means "to build."

a Rabbie Leo Trepp, "Children are the blessing for the Jew. Each child brings a blessing all his own, our ancestors would say. We rejoice in child brings a blessing all his own, our ancestors would say. We rejoice in children because we are a people, a historical people."