I don't know how many times I've found myself praying that God would help me to be the kind of father He is. I mean, if I'm going to be a great dad (and with five sons I need to be), I must exhibit patience, wisdom, compassion, strength and offer protection, discipline, shelter and assurance.
I've read books on parenting, watched the videos, listened to the sermons. Most of it was pretty good stuff, but nothing has taught me more about being "dad" than paying attention to the Heavenly Father. I guess it's the whole "grace" thing. I'm convinced that one of the chief purposes of grace is to keep us appropriately humble. Further, Paul tells Titus that it's grace that teaches us to say "no" to ungodliness. Probably because through grace we realize how totally depraved we are (and therefore undeserving) and how precious it is to be called to salvation. So, it follows that as we say "no" to rotten parenting, grace can also teach us to say "yes" to parenting the way our Father does.
If any Christian would take a minute and observe the actions of the Heavenly Father in their life, it would quickly become apparent that God is GOOD at being a Father: He's always there for me when I need to talk, He's involved in my daily life, He's interested in what I'm doing, I can't hide anything from Him, He doesn't let any rotten behavior slide by without discipline, He's patient when I'm learning, He endures my fits and He is utterly dependable.
As humans, we'll never be perfect parents. As Christians, we have a perfect Parent. There could be no more appropriate prayer than, "God, help me to be a father like you are."
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