Reflections of a dad on the downhill side
By Dean Honeycutt
Mitchell County
Pam and I have been married for 31 years and have trained five children as best we could. Where has the time gone? Life is genuinely like a vapor here for just a little while and then gone. As I think back over the years, I reflect more on my failures than I do my successes as a husband and parent. Really all other things in life matter little compared to being a godly father and loving husband. Success in my occupation matters little if I have not trained my children to follow the Lord and loved my wife as Christ loves His Church.
God has truly blessed us tremendously. I thank God every day for my wonderful wife and children. God brought us together. I grew up in Texas after my dad’s job transferred him from the mountains to the Panhandle of Texas. But the Lord would bring me back east and I met Pam at Mars Hill College. I always wanted to marry a mountain girl. Lol. Men if you have a wife that loves the Lord you are truly blessed, I do not know where I would be without the support and love of my caring wife.
I have found over the years that dating my wife has never really stopped. Granted I am not very romantic but spending time with Pam is just as sweet today as it was on our first date. Yes, I am trying to get brownie points and hopefully, she reads this article. I need all the help I can get. Lol. Christ loves His church and gave Himself for it. So, Christ spends a lot of time loving His church. I should spend a lot of time with my wife. Time is not going to stop for me, and I am not promised tomorrow, so I need to spend time with my wife and the people I love. I think about my grandparents they wanted to travel when my grandfather retired. They got to go on a couple of trips, but my grandfather got Alzheimer’s and the traveling had to stop. Time is short and as husbands and fathers, we need to major on our wives and children and minor on our occupations and personal interest. Do not put off tomorrow what needs to be done today.
Christ gave himself to the church. He forfeited His life for the life of the Church. As a husband and father, I forfeit my personal interest for the benefit of my family. I am still learning. As I wrote earlier, I have failed in many areas. I think back over the years and could have spent more time with my children and doing their hobbies. Though a lot of Saturdays were spent on the soccer field or at a cow show, I still wonder if that was enough. My kids would probably say that it was, but I am on the downhill side now and reflecting on what really matters. What little sacrifices I make in my own interest will reap benefits in the love and nurture of my wife and children.
What matters is my relationship with Christ. If this relationship is not where it needs to be then my relationship with my family will suffer. What matters is my wife and children, and grandchildren. What matters is sharing the Gospel of Christ with my family and others. I do not take people to heaven; however, I do have a responsibility to share Jesus with all people. Christ gave himself for the church, so others may belong to the Body of Christ. Had Christ not given Himself I could never belong to the Bridegroom. We must love what God loves, and God loves His Church. When I love my wife and family, and I love others, then I will love myself, and be confident in who I am in Christ. I thank God for His love; I feel at times I do not deserve God’s love. My wife is a picture of God’s love for me. She loves me despite all my failures and disappointments. But thank God, He loves me and my family. God loves you and God cares about you. Discipline yourself in the things God loves, and then you can love yourself and love your family.
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Pastor Dean Honeycutt shepherds Snow Hill Baptist Church in Bakersville, NC. He may be reached at 828-385-0213, snowhillbaptist@gmail.com, or visit their website at www.snowhillbaptist.com.
You can read more good Christian news from Dean HERE.
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