From Father to Son

Bible:

From there he went up to Beersheba. And the Lord appeared to him the same night and said, “I am the God of Abraham your father. Fear not, for I am with you and will bless you and multiply your offspring for my servant Abraham’s sake.” So he built an altar there and called upon the name of the Lord and pitched his tent there. And there Isaac’s servants dug a well. Genesis 26:23-25 ESV

“You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens are above the earth. Deuteronomy 11:18-21 ESV

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. Ephesians 1:3-4a ESV

Reflection:

James Wilder was a very good farmer. He knew how to plant and harvest crops, take good care of his animals, and make and build things. He was free and independent, and his son Almanzo wanted to be just like him. Almanzo learned how to be a farmer from his father, and when he grew up, he was a farmer also. He followed in his father’s footsteps.

Isaac also followed the example of his father Abraham. Abraham built altars and worshiped God, and Isaac also built an altar worshiped God. Abraham is an example of a parent passing down faith to his child. God had given Abraham great blessings, and had promised that the Savior would come from his family. Abraham knew how important it was that Isaac should carry on in that faith. Even more important, though, is that God appeared to Isaac just as he had appeared to Abraham. He gave Isaac the same promise he had given his father. God blessed Isaac greatly, and Isaac worshiped God in response to all the wonderful promises and blessings God had given him. God was the one who gave Isaac faith in the promised Savior.

Having Christian parents to teach you to know the love of Jesus is an incredible blessing. But the blessing our Heavenly Father gives us through Jesus is the best one of all. Because of Jesus God forgives our sins and calls us his own children. Because of Jesus we have life with God forever. Our parents might teach us to worship God, but God the Holy Spirit gives us our faith. God, though Jesus, gives us the reason to worship him forever!

Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us Jesus and making us your children. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Source:

Wilder, Laura Ingalls Farmer Boy New York: Harper and Brothers, 1933.