Time Together – June 16, 2002
The years go quickly, and before we know it, sons and daughters leave the shelter of home. Their going brings thoughtful reflection and treasured memories—like when a father and his children decide to sleep out in the backyard. Under the stars, they talk about heaven, the wonders of nature, sunrises and sunsets. The father doesn’t know much about astronomy; he can’t answer all their questions. But the children know their dad loves them because he wants to be with them.
To children, love is spelled T-I-M-E, time: the desire to be together, the commitment to put family first. In a few years, when the children are gone from home and silence replaces joyful noise, the children will remember time spent with Dad. More than the house he built or the things he bought for them or even the opportunities he provided, they’ll remember when he missed a favorite ball game on TV to play catch with them, or when he sat next to them on the piano bench while they practiced—even though he couldn’t read a musical note. And when they grow up and times get tough for them, they’ll picture his smiling face, his “thumb’s up,” just like they used to see in when they’d look for him during a school program.
Many of us wait too long for such precious slices of family life and may have some heartache over missed opportunities, lost family moments, things that might have been done or could have been said. Fathers, no matter the age of your children, they need you. Today more than ever, children and grandchildren need examples of goodness and morality, sources of strength and comfort.
The world needs loving fathers who treasure their children more than life itself, fathers who—although far from perfect—do their best to emulate the perfect Father of us all—even our Heavenly Father.
May He bless them—and all the children under their watchful care—so that as the sun rises and sets, children will know to whom they can look for direction and strength.
Program #3800