June 18th is Fathers Day. It is so good to honour the Father's and to honour our heavenly Father also.
It is an exciting time to be alive, but it can also be a hard time and for our children and families a scary time. I came across an old hymn last week, which I hope will spur the men on to stay close to the Lord and to be obedient in all that He is telling them at this time.

Rise up, O men of God!
Have done with lesser things.
Give heart and mind and soul and strength
to serve the King of Kings.

Rise up, O men of God!
The kingdom tarries long.
Bring in the day of brotherhood
and end the night of wrong.

Rise up, O men of God!
The church for you doth wait,
her strength unequal to her task;
rise up and make her great!

Lift high the cross of Christ!
Tread where his feet have trod.
As brothers of the Son of Man,
rise up, O men of God!

Isaiah 30:15 says, This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength.”
He was talking to Israel , but we can all take a lesson from this verse.

Repentance  
Acts 3:19 says, “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.”

Rest
Matthew 11:28 says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

Repentance removes the wall that comes up between us and God when our sins are left unchecked.
When we seek Him, He removes the heavy burden and gives us His easy yoke.
Refreshing comes when that wall is removed and we find that rest for our souls. Who would not want those times when the Lord comes and refreshes His weary, tired people?

Quietness
Psalm 23:2 says, “He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters.”

Trust
Jeremiah 17:7-8 says, “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when the heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”

When we walk beside the quiet waters that God leads us to, we are able to hear His voice speaking to us, leading us, encouraging us, loving us. This builds our confidence in Him and who He is and how much He loves us.
Great strength comes from hearing His voice and trusting Him who is able to keep us from falling.

And so my prayer for all fathers on this Father's Day and to all of God's faithful warriors is for the gift of repentance, the assurance of His rest, times of refreshing, quietness in His presence, and a growing trust  in the One who has chosen you.