You SOUND just like your Father

Role: teacher

SAY what God would say

You have your Father’s VOICE

do what I SAY

Voice - affirmation / direction

Speak words of encouragement - Yes and amen

Same yesterday- consistent. - Dependable. Stable. Secure.

Proverbs 4:20–22 NLT

20 My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. 21 Don’t lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart, 22 for they bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body.

1 - SING Your Children’s PRAISE

SING Your Father’s SONG

Zephaniah 3:17 NLT

17 For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”

When you SING your children’s praise – “You SOUND just like your Father”

SHOWER Your Father’s LOVE – YOU are My Child

Speak Your Father’s AFFRIMATION

Luke 3:21–22 NLT

21 One day when the crowds were being baptized, Jesus himself was baptized. As he was praying, the heavens opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit, in bodily form, descended on him like a dove. And a voice from heaven said, “You are my dearly loved Son, and you bring me great joy.”

When you Speak AFFIRMATION – “You SOUND just like your Father”

Be a father of PRAISE. Affirm your children regularly. Let them know they're valuable and that you believe in them and love them. Praise brings out the best in a child. I used to drop my children off at school and would tell them, "God loves you, Daddy loves you, and you can do anything you set your mind to."

when dads SPEAK the Father’s Word in LOVE, it will cause the children to WANT to “do as I Say”

when a father makes good on his word – it brings stability to the home

2- SPEAK Your Father’s WORDS

A father’s words carry great influence on a child - good or bad

SPEAK the Fathers Word TO your kids – The father as TEACHER is to TALK TO your kids ABOUT God

Abraham was chosen by God to teach his family about the Lord

Genesis 18:19 NLT

19 I have singled him out so that he will direct his sons and their families to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just. Then I will do for Abraham all that I have promised.”

Talk to your kids about God - devotions

Proverbs - Heed my sayings

Tie then on your arms

Speak Your Father’s MERCY – I speak daddy’s HEART

as his spiritual Father, God instructed Moses when they met alone and face to face

Numbers 7:89 NLT

89 Whenever Moses went into the Tabernacle to speak with the Lord, he heard the voice speaking to him from between the two cherubim above the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement—that rests on the Ark of the Covenant. The Lord spoke to him from there.

private - most holy place of the Tabernacle

quiet - God spoke gently but clearly

God’s voice was not intimidating, patronizing, sarcastic, or man-splaining.

God’s conversation with Moses was a 2-way street, not a lecture

A dialogue vs a monologue

They spoke as men and even sometimes as friends.

Exodus 33:11 - “Inside the Tent of Meeting, the LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend.”

still small voice

Even when Elijah was running from the will of God, the Lord did not scream at him in claps of thunder.

1 Kings 19:11–12 NLT

11 “Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper.

Step 1 - Fathers - don’t say the WRONG words - to your children

Deep down, people know when they have done wrong for their hearts already convict them.

In that vulnerable condition, the last thing they need is a brow beating or their noses rubbed in their sin.

If God was not in the noise, why did He show them to Elijah?

To show him the difference between man’s character and God’s character

windstorm - A godly father is not going to “blow up” at his children in anger

earthquake - A godly father will not “shake” his children in violence

fire - A godly father is not hot headed and short tempered

God was not “in” your childhood trauma

God did not cause unhealthy or dysfunctional family dynamics, where the children felt intimidated, inferior, neglected, abused, unappreciated, uncelebrated or unloved.

A father’s words carry weight

Many adults still struggle with their father’s words - whether they were abused with harsh words, or neglected with no words at all.

Choose today to break any generational curse of abusive language.

Most people repeat what they have learned at home from their fathers - whether they realize it, or want to behave that way, or not.

Let the Father’s words heal YOUR words!

Step 2 - Fathers - say the RIGHT words - to your children

Fathers, be the leader that God made you - break the silence - say the words that every child longs to hear - I LOVE YOU

3 - PRAY Your Father’s PRAYERS

After showering and commanding, it’s time to pray that it all works long term

Be a father of PRAYER. We always had a time for devotions.

When you are a father of prayer, you teach your children how to pray and get direction from God for their lives. Someone said, "A family altar would alter many families."

Be a dad who knows how to pray, and teach your children how to pray.

SPEAK the Father’s Word WITH your kids – The father as PRIEST talks WITH your kids TO God

Fathers and children are to pray the Lord’s prayer together to OUR Father - Matt 6

Jesus only spoke what His Father said

John 12:47–50 NLT

47 I will not judge those who hear me but don’t obey me, for I have come to save the world and not to judge it. 48 But all who reject me and my message will be judged on the day of judgment by the truth I have spoken. 49 I don’t speak on my own authority. The Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to say it. 50 And I know his commands lead to eternal life; so I say whatever the Father tells me to say.”

Godly fathers will say what God the Father said!