YOUR HOME MATTERS

INTRODUCTION

OPENING STORY: IT’S 1966 MEN, AND YOU’RE NOT IN AMERICA, BUT IN THE MIDDLE OF A FIELD IN VIETNAM. YOUR HEART IS RACING BECAUSE YOU WERE JUST INFORMED BY YOUR PATROL LEADER THAT YOU ARE THE POINT MAN FOR THIS EVENING’S EXPEDITION. YOU HAVE SEVEN OTHER MEN FOLLOWING YOU. THERE’S BEEN REPORTS OF ENEMY ACTIVITY AND BOOBY TRAPS IN THIS AREA, AND YOUR JOB IS TO FIND OUT WHAT’S GOING ON. ONE WRONG TURN, A BAD DECISION WILL HAVE CATASTROPHIC RESULTS ON YOU AND YOUR TEAM. THE LIVES OF THE MEN FOLLOWING YOU ARE DEPENDENT ON YOUR DECISION MAKING AND LEADERSHIP!

POINT: MEN, YOU MAY NOT BE LEADING A PATROL IN VIETNAM, BUT YOU ARE THE POINT MAN FOR ANOTHER TEAM- IT’S THE FAMILY. AND LIKE VIETNAM YOU’VE BEEN CALLED TO LEAD IN THE MIDDLE OF A WAR ZONE WHERE THE ENEMY IS AFTER YOUR FAMILY, AND HE WANTS NOTHING MORE THAN TO SEE ITS DEMISE. FOLLOWING YOU IS A DAUGHTER WHO IS BEING TEMPTED BY THE BOOBY TRAPS...TO FIND HER IDENTITY IN LOOKS AND THE GAZE OF MEN. FOLLOWING YOU IS A SON WHO IS BEING TEMPTED WITH PORNOGRAPHY…THERE’S YOUR WIFE WHO HAS A PROFOUND NEED FOR YOUR STRENGTH AND SECURITY. THE TRAJECTORY OF THEIR LIVES WILL BE DEPENDENT UPON YOU, POINT MAN, AND YOUR DECISION MAKING AND LEADERSHIP!

SUMMARY STATEMENT: MEN, ON THIS FATHER’S DAY, I WANT TO PAINT A VISION FOR YOU AS A MAN AND WHAT GOD EXPECTS OF US AS THE POINT MEN IN OUR HOME!

THE CENTRALITY OF GOD- VERSES 1-2

HISTORICAL CONTEXT: …SONG OF ASCENTS. , PSALMS. CALLED THIS BECAUSE JERUSALEM WAS A CITY THAT SAT ON A HILL, SO WHENEVER YOU WENT TO JERUSALEM YOU TRAVELED UP, OR YOU ASCENDED. AND THESE WERE SONGS THAT WERE SUNG BY THE JEWISH PILGRIMS ON THEIR WAY TO JERUSALEM FOR ONE OF THE THREE KEY FESTIVALS- PASSOVER, FEAST OF WEEKS, FEAST OF TABERNACLES. JOURNEY SONGS. 99 BOTTLES OF BEER/COKE ON THE WALL. SORT OF LIKE THAT. AND ONE OF THE SONGS THAT THEY SANG, WAS A SONG THAT FOCUSED ON THE CENTRALITY OF GOD IN THE HOME. AMAZING!

THIS PSALM FOCUSES ON THE CENTRALITY OF GOD. VERSE 1- THE CENTRALITY OF GOD IN THE HOME. LATER ON IN VERSE 1- THE CENTRALITY OF GOD OVER THE CITY. VERSE 2 THE CENTRALITY OF GOD OVER WORK. AND FINALLY IN VERSES 3-5 THE CENTRALITY OF GOD IN THE HOME AGAIN, WITH SPECIAL FOCUS ON CHILDREN. THE MESSAGE OF THE PSALM IS CLEAR: UNLESS GOD IS THE ARCHITECT, WHAT WE ARE BUILDING IS IN VAIN! IT’S EMPTY, PURPOSELESS...

FALLING WATER ILLUSTRATION: EDGAR KAUFMANN WAS A WEALTHY DEPARTMENT STORE OWNER IN THE PITTSBURGH AREA WHO WANTED A WEEKEND HOME BUILT NEAR BEAR RUN, PENNSYLVANIA. HE REACHED OUT TO THE WORLD FAMOUS ARCHITECT FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT, ASKING HIM TO DESIGN THE HOME. WRIGHT AGREED. BUT FOR SOME STRANGE REASON, OVER THE ENSUING MONTHS KEPT PUTTING KAUFMANN OFF WHENEVER HE WANTED TO SEE THE PLANS. KAUFMANN WAS FRUSTRATED BECAUSE HE WANTED THIS HOME TO BE BUILT QUICKLY, AND YET HE KNEW CONSTRUCTION COULD NOT GET STARTED UNTIL WRIGHT AND DESIGNED AND GIVEN THE BLUEPRINT FOR THE HOME. FINALLY, WHEN HE COULD TAKE IT NO LONGER HE ANNOUNCED TO WRIGHT THAT HE WAS GOING TO SHOW UP AT HIS OFFICE TO SEE WHAT HE HAD. AND THERE, JUST MOMENTS BEFORE HE ARRIVED, WRIGHT SAT DOWN AND LAID OUT THE DRAWINGS FOR WHAT WOULD BECOME ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST FAMOUS HOMES- FALLING WATER. NOW WITH THE DESIGN IN HAND CONSTRUCTION COULD BEGIN. THE RESULT IS ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST SOUGHT AFTER HONMES TO VE VISITED. ENDURING LEGACY. KAUFMANN UNDERSTOOD PORFOUNDLY, THAT ONE DID NOT JUST BUILD WITHOUG A PLAN. AND MORE, IF HE WANTED A MASTERPIECE, A LEGACY THAT WOULD ENDURE THE TEST OF TIME, HE NEEDED A MASTERPIECE FOR AN ARCHITECT.

POINT: - GOD IS THE GOOD AND BETTER FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT. IF YOU WANT A MASTERPIECE FOR A HOME THAT HAS ENDURING INFLUENCE, IT DEMANDS THAT YOU HAVE A MASTERPIECE FOR AN ARCHITECT WHO IS GOD! AND GOD HAS GIVEN HIS BLUEPRINT FOR THE HOME, AND IT’S FOUND RIGHT HERE IN . WE MUST MAKE THE DECISION TO FOLLOW HIS BLUEPRINT. JOSHUA DID…AS FOR ME...LET’S LOOK AT IT! OUR TEXT LAYS DOWN FOUR THINGS GREAT DADS DO (RIDE)

POINT: - GOD IS THE GOOD AND BETTER FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT. IF YOU WANT A MASTERPIECE FOR A HOME THAT HAS ENDURING INFLUENCE, IT DEMANDS THAT YOU HAVE A MASTERPIECE FOR AN ARCHITECT WHO IS GOD! AND GOD HAS GIVEN HIS BLUEPRINT FOR THE HOME, AND IT’S FOUND RIGHT HERE IN . LET’S LOOK AT IT!

RELATIONAL- VERSE 4

EXPLANATION: VERSE 3. CHILDREN ARE A HERITAGE. IDEA IS INHERITANCE. WORD WAS USED IN THE BIBLE AND IN ANTIQUITY OF SOMETHING THAT HAD BEEN SET ASIDE FOR THE FUTURE FOR THAT CHILD. IT WAS SOMETHING THAT THEY LOOKED FORWARD TO. IN FACT WHAT’S REMARKABLE IS THAT THIS IS HOW GOD VIEWS YOU AND I AS HIS CHILDREN- . GOD GETS EXCITED OVER US! NO ONE IS EVER DOWN ABOUT AN INHERITANCE. THERE’S EXCITEMENT, ANTICIPATION. POINT: CHILDREN ARE NOT A NUISANCE. THEY ARE OUR HERITAGE. SOMETHING WE GET EXCITED OVER! THEY ARE JOY.

EXPLANATION PART 2- BUT THERE’S SOMETHING ELSE HERE BEHIND THIS WORD HERITAGE. . THIS MEANS THAT WE ARE THINKING ABOUT THE FUTURE AND SETTING SOMETHING ASIDE FOR A TIME WE WILL NOT SEE. LIFE INSURANCE. SAVINGS. INVESTMENTS. RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS. WE ARE SETTING ASIDE SOMETHING FOR THEM OFF INTO THE FUTURE, THAT WILL BETTER THEIR LIVES. SO THAT WHEN THE WRITER SAYS THAT CHILDREN ARE OUR HERITAGE, WHAT HE IS SAYING IS THAT THEY ARE THE DEPOSITS WE ARE MAKING TO BETTER OUR WORLD FOR THE GLORY OF GOD FOR A TIME WE WILL NOT SEE! THEY ARE THE MOST SIGNIFICANT INVESTMENT IN OUR PORTFOLIO! UNIFYING POINT: CHILDREN ARE VALUABLE!

APPLICATION: NOW THIS IS PROBABLY THE STRONGEST STATEMENT I HAVE EVER MADE TO YOU ALL SINCE I’VE BEEN HERE, AND I SAY IT COMPLETELY IN LOVE. SOME OF YOU ARE HERE AND YOU ARE MARRIED AND DON’T HAVE CHILDREN. SOME IT’S BECAUSE YOU CAN’T HAVE THEM BIOLOGICALLY. OTHERS OF YOU, YOU JUST DON’T WANT THEM. BUT IF I UNDERSTAND THIS PASSAGE RIGHT, GIVEN THE PREMIUM ON CHILDREN, I BELIEVE THAT EVERY HOME SHOULD HAVE THE PRESENCE OF CHILDREN, EITHER BIOLOGICAL, ADOPTED, FOSTERED OR MENTORED. WHY? THEY ARE A HERITAGE FROM THE LORD! A BLESSING AND THEY HAVE NEED OF FATHERING!

EXPLANATION 3: IN THE HANDS OF A WARRIOR. USES THE IMAGERY OF ARROWS TO DEPICT CHILDREN, BUT NOTICE THAT ARROWS ARE IN RELATIONSHIP WITH THE ONE SHOOTING THEM, WHICH IS THE WARRIOR. ARROWS ARE USELESS WITHOUT A WARRIOR TO DRAW THE BOW AND RELEASE THEM. ARROWS NEED A WARRIOR TO ACCOMPLISH THEIR GOD ORDAINED PURPOSE! THEY’RE IN THE HANDS. THERE’S A RELATIONSHIP THERE! ANCIENTS UNDERSTOOD THE VALUE OF THIS. IN JEWISH CULTURE IT WAS THE MOTHER WHO HAD PRIMARY CARE AND RESPONSIBILITY UNTIL ABOUT AGE 5. AFTER THAT THE FATHER TOOK OVER WITH THE SONS. HE HAD ONE JOB- TO TEACH AND MODEL MANHOOD TO HIS SON FOR THE EXPRESS PURPOSE OF HIM TAKING OVER THE FAMILY BUSINESS AND CONTINUING THE FAMILY LEGACY FOR A TIME HE COULD NOT SEE. IN THE LIFE OF THE CHILD, THE FATHER WAS ABSOLUTELY VITAL.

SOCIOLOGICAL BARRIER: TIMES HAVE CHANGED. TWO FORCES IMPEDING RELATIONAL PRESENCE OF FATHER IN THE HOME. SLAVERY, BUILT ON DISINTEGRATION OF FAMILY. INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION. FIRST TIME IN HISTORY FATHER’S SENT OUTSIDE OF HOME FOR WORK. BUSYNESS TODAY...

EXAMPLES/QUOTES OF THE DEVASTATING EFFECTS. FREDERICK DOUGLAS’ QUEST FOR HIS DAD. PICK A WHITE MAN.

APPLICATION: DAD. RELATIONSHIP, JUST SHOWING UP IS EVERYTHING. ADAMS FISHING STORY.

INTENTIONALITY- VERSE 4

EXPLANATION: ANOTHER IDEA BEHIND THE IMAGE OF ARROWS IS THEY MOVE SWIFTLY. IT GOES BY FAST. INFANTS ONE DAY, DROPPING OFF TO COLLEGE THE NEXT. SOMEONE ONCE SAID THAT PARENTING IS WHEN THE DAYS LONG AND THE YEARS ARE SHORT. THAT’S RIGHT. SO WHAT THIS DEMANDS IS THAT BECAUSE WE KNOW WE ONLY HAVE A FEW SHORT YEARS TO INFLUENCE THEM, WE DO SO WITH INTENTIONALITY. . HERE HE IS DEALING WITH THE SWIFTNESS OF TIME AND HE’S SAYING TEACH US TO NUMBER OUR DAYS. WHY? WHEN WE DO THAT, IT DOESN’T MAKE TIME MORE SWIFTLY, BUT IT FORCES US TO ACT MORE INTENTIONALLY.

SHOT CLOCK ILLUSTRATION: WHEN A BASKETBALL PLAYER DRIBBLES THE BALL ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS THEY WILL DO IS TO LOOK AT THE SHOT CLOCK. THE SHOT CLOCK BASICALLY SAYS YOU HAVE A SMALL WINDOW OF TIME TO PUT UP A SHOT, OR YOU WILL BE PENALIZED. THE MESSAGE OF THE SHOT CLOCK IS TO MOVE INTENTIONALLY WITHIN THIS SMALL WINDOW OF TIME.

APPLICATION: FATHER’S, YOU MAY NOT KNOW IT , BUT WHEN IT COMES TO OPPORTUNITIES TO INFLUENCE YOUR CHILDREN YOU HAVE A SHOT CLOCK. MOVE INTENTIONALLY? ARE YOU MAKING THE MOST OF IT? HOW DO WE DO THIS? I KNOW OF A DAD WHO EVERY NIGHT WHEN HE TUCKS HIS DAUGHTER INTO BED ASKS HER ABOUT HER DAY AND JUST SITS AND LISTENS FOR A HALF HOUR. I KNOW OF ANOTHER DAD WHOSE DAUGHTER LOVES COOKIES, SO HE TAKES HER TO THE BEST COOKIE STORES AND BAKERIES IN TOWN AND THEY RATE THE COOKIES. OTHER EXAMPLES.

DISTANCE- VERSE 4

EXPLANATION: ARROWS WERE ONE OF THE ONLY WEAPONS IN ANCIENT WARFARE THAT WAS DESIGNED TO BE SHOT FROM A LONG DISTANCE. A DISTANCE THE ARCHER WOULD NOT COVER THEMSELVES, BUT WOULD RELEASE THOSE ARROWS FOR A FUTURE THEY WOULD NOT PERSONALLY VISIT OR SEE. CHILDREN ARE WHAT WE AIM AT INTO THE FUTURE FOR A TIME WE WILL NOT SEE. CHANCES ARE IN 50 YEARS I WILL BE VERY DEAD, BUT MY CHILDREN, MY ARROWS, WILL BE VERY ALIVE. WHAT DIFFERENCE THEY WOULD HAVE MADE WILL IN LARGE PART BE DETERMINED BY HOW I SHOT THEM. SEE THE IMPLICATION IN THE IMAGERY AM SHOOTING THEM FROM MY HOME (NEVER TO RETURN, THEY ARE ARROWS, NOT BOOMERANGS) INTO SOCIETY. CORRELATION BETWEEN THE HOME AND THE CITY. VERSE 1. VERSE 5. THE HEALTH AND LONG TERM SECURITY AND VIBRANCY OF A CITY DEMANDED THE BIRTH OF CHILDREN AND PARTICULARLY SONS WHO WHEN THEY WERE OLD ENOUGH WOULD MEET THE ENEMY AT THE GATES! AS GOES THE HOME SO GOES THE SOCIETY. AS GOES THE FATHER SO GOES THE HOME SO GOES SOCIETY! YOUR HOME MATTERS!

CHURCHILL’S WAR ROOM- WIFE AND I SPENT AN AFTERNOON THERE AND I WAS STRUCK BY HOW SMALL THE QUARTERS WERE, AND HOW SIGNIFICANT OF A ROLE IT PLAYED IN WORLD WAR TWO, LITERALLY CHANGING THE TRAJECTORY OF THE WAR AND OUR WORLD. IF IT WASN’T FOR THAT SMALL SPACE OUR WORLD WOULD BE DIFFERENT. THE POINT IS YOUR HOME, YOUR SMALL HOME, APARTMENT IS ABSOLUTELY VITAL IN CHANGING OUR WORLD!

APPLICATIONS?

ENDURING PURPOSE- VERSE 4

EXPLANATION: ARROWS ARE NEVER SHOT HAPHAZARDLY OR RANDOMLY. OH NO. THE WARRIOR SETS HIS SIGHTS ON A TARGET. DRAWS HIS BOW AND RELEASES HIS ARROW TO THAT TARGET. THERE’S A VISION AND AN ENDURING PURPOSE, AND SUCH MUST BE THE CASE FOR THE FATHER WITH HIS CHILDREN. WHAT’S YOUR VISION DAD? SATAN HAS ONE FOR YOUR HOME. HIS STRATEGY IS CLEAR- DIVIDE MOM AND DAD. DIVIDE DAD FROM THE KIDS. IF NEITHER OF THESE STRATEGIES WORK, HE WILL MOVE TO NUMBER THREE- PASSIVITY:

“If a man is passive and indifferent to the things of God and the spiritual leadership of his home, then attack is not necessary. He is already neutralized”- Steve Farrar, Point Man.

PASSIVE DADS DON’T HAVE TARGETS. DAD’S DO.

THE TARGET: WE WANT TO RELEASE FROM OUR HOMES GODLY MEN AND GODLY WOMEN WHO IMPACT THEIR GENERATION FOR THE GLORY OF GOD AND GOOD OF OTHERS FOR A TIME WE WILL NOT SEE.

CLOSING ILLUSTRATION: SOME YEARS AGO IN THE KRUGER NATIONAL STATE PARK THEY RAN INTO A SIGNIFICANT PROBLEM OF ELEPHANT OVER POPULATION. SO THEY DECIDED TO TRANSPORT SOME OF THE ELEPHANTS OUT TO ANOTHER PARK BY HELICOPTER, WHICH MEANT THEY COULD ONLY TAKE SOME OF THE FEMALE AND YOUNGER ELEPHANTS BECAUSE THE OLDER MALE ELEPHANTS WERE TOO HEAVY. WHAT THEN FOLLOWED WAS SHEER PANDEMONIUM. SEE, IN THE NEW PARK THE ADOLESCENT ELEPHANTS WENT CRAZY. KILLING RHINOS AND ACTING COMPLETELY UNRULY. THIS WAS BEHAVIOR THE PEOPLE HAD NEVER SEEN BEFORE. HOW WERE THEY GOING TO REIN THINGS BACK IN? NO PROBLEM. THEY DECIDED TO BRING IN THE ADULT MALE ELEPHANTS FROM ANOTHER PARK, AND WHEN THESE ADULT MALE ELEPHANTS SHOWED UP AND LET OUT THEIR SOUND, THE YOUNGER ADOLESCENCE STEPPED BACK INTO LINE AND THE UNRULY BEHAVIOR WAS OVER BECAUSE THE MEN WERE ON THE SCENE.

APPLICATION