“How To Give A Father A Gift”

Sunday, June 18, 2017

To this day, when my dad is asked, “What do you want for a Father’s Day gift?,” he will say something like, “It doesn’t have to be a brand new truck, but something in that price range would be fine.” And even while I shake my head at him, I still think it’s funny every year.

Another father says something more attainable and more profound when asked the same question: “Prove that you know me.” That’s it. He wants his wife and kids to demonstrate that they truly know and appreciate him, and to let that be the motivation behind their gifts.

For the Christian, every day is our Father’s day, and we have an opportunity to give him a gift every day. And God’s hopes for gifts from his children are the same as that dad mentioned just above: “prove that you know me.” Inherent within that request: prove that you respect me.

In Malachi 1, the Lord says to his people, “A son honors his father… If then I am a father, where is my honor? ... When you offer blind animals in sacrifice, is that not evil? And when you offer those that are lame or sick, is that not evil? ... Oh that there were one among you who would shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire on my altar in vain! I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord of hosts, and I will not accept an offering from your hand.” (Mal. 1:6-10)  Does a second-rate gift prove that God’s people know him? That they respect him? The answer is an obvious and resounding, “No.”

When you give a gift to your dad, don’t take my dad’s advice—it doesn’t have to be expensive. But do remember to show dad, by your gift, that you know him—what he appreciates, what he loves, and what he hopes to be in his life. And even more than that, make sure that the gift of your whole life shows that you know all the same things about our Heavenly Father.

- Dan Lankford, minister

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