Blessed Is the Man Who Is Called Father

By Brother Keith L. Brown

First Counselor, Annapolis Ward Bishopric

The following Sacrament talk was delivered to the congregation of the Annapolis Maryland Ward of the Annapolis Maryland Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, on Sabbath Day morning, 17 June 2007, Father’s Day.

There are a lot of things written and said about mothers and rightfully so for mothers are very unique and special people and if it were not for a dear mother none of us would be here. Mothers are choice daughters of our Heavenly Father and are deserving of all of the love, honor, and respect that is due unto them. With that being said, let us not forget that fathers are also very special people.

A son whose father had passed away recently decided that he would honor his father on Father’s Day by writing a simple thank you note. These are the words that he wrote:

Dear Dad,

You may never know just how big an influence you had on my life. So, I pause for just a moment on this special Father’s Day to say “Thank You.”

Thank you for the love that you showed me in your own special way. Thank you for taking the time to pray for me each day. Thank you for all of your hard labors to provide for our family throughout the years and for teaching me the value of hard work and how to make an honest living. Thank you for being there through the good times, the bad times, the smiles and the tears. Thank you for molding me and shaping me into the man that I am today. Thank you for teaching me and showing me the way.  

I love you Dad, more than words can say. I miss you very much.

With love,

Your son,

Whereas mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families.

While preparing this talk I came across an interesting acronym for the word FATHERS. “F” is for faithful. “A” is for always there. “T” is for trustworthy. “H” is for honoring. “E” is for ever-loving. “R” is for righteous. And “S” is for supportive.

By virtue of the Priesthood of God and by the power of the Holy Ghost, fathers can and should be the greatest influence for good in the lives of their wives and children. Every father should rise to new levels of leadership and service in his home. Every young man that is not yet a father should prepare himself for this calling in this life and in the eternities.

President Ezra Taft Benson once gave this important counsel: “A father’s duty is to make his home a place of happiness and joy. He cannot do this when there is bickering, quarrelling, contention, or unrighteous behavior. The powerful effect of righteous fathers in setting an example, disciplining and training, nurturing and loving is vital to the spiritual welfare of his children. . .Remember your sacred calling as a father in Israel—your most important calling in time and eternity—a calling from which you will never be released. (Ensign, November 1987, pp. 50-51.)

And President Howard W. Hunter gave this important counsel: “We encourage you brethren, to remember that priesthood is a righteous authority only. Earn the respect and confidence of your children through your loving relationship with them. A righteous father protects his children with his time and presence in their social, educational, and spiritual activities and responsibilities. Tender expressions of love and affection toward children are as much the responsibility of the father as the mother. Tell your children that you love them.”  (Howard W. Hunter, “Being a Righteous Husband and Father,” General Conference, October 1994; see Ensign, November 1994, p.51.)

One of the most important responsibilities of a father is to bring his children “up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (See Ephesians 6:4). Fathers, working together with their wives as equal partners, are to train up their children in the way that they should go so that when they are old they will not depart from those things that they have been taught. (See Proverbs 22:6). I stand as a living witness that these things are true and I am eternally grateful to have been raised in a home with both a father and a mother who adhered to these very principles. I am thankful for a father and a mother who did their best to establish a family that was maintained on the principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, and compassion for one another.  

Similar principles were taught to the children of Israel as found in the sixth chapter of the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy, verses 4 through 9 and 20 through 23:

4  Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

5  And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

6  And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:

7  And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

8  And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.

9  And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

20  And when thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying, What mean the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments, which the LORD our God hath commanded you?

21  Then thou shalt say unto thy son, We were Pharaoh's bondmen in Egypt; and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand:

22  And the LORD shewed signs and wonders, great and sore, upon Egypt, upon Pharaoh, and upon all his household, before our eyes:

23  And he brought us out from thence, that he might bring us in, to give us the land which he sware unto our fathers.

Here in these verses the Lord tells the parents that they could not safely assume that the instructions that He had given them as well as all of the miracles that He did for them were going to make it from one generation to another. He instructs them to tell their children how He moved among them. They were to talk with their children about the instructions and commands that the Lord had given them and why He gave them. This was not to be a one-time event but was to be a daily part of their responsibilities as parents.

In the same manner, fathers have the responsibility to daily shepherd their families through means of the principles and ordinances of the gospel. Salvation is a family affair and fathers are called to lead the way by: (1) teaching the doctrines of salvation in their homes (D&C 68:25-28), (2) providing for the temporal and spiritual needs of their families (Mosiah 4:14-15) and (3) lovingly presiding in righteousness in their homes consistent with the principles of righteous priesthood service.

 President Ezra Taft Benson once said, “God established that fathers are to preside in the home. Fathers are to provide, love, teach, and direct.” (Ensign, May 1984, p.6.) President Benson also stated, “Fatherhood is not a matter of station or wealth; it is a matter of desire, diligence, and determination to see one’s family exalted in the celestial kingdom. If that prize is lost, nothing else really matters.” (Ensign, May 1981, p.36.)  And President Lorenzo Snow taught that “If you ever secure a union in any family in Zion, . . . you have got to bind that family together in one, and there has got to be the Spirit of the Lord in the head of that family, and he should possess that light and that intelligence which, if carried out in daily life and conduct of these individuals, will prove the salvation of that family, for he holds their salvation in his hands.” (HC, 4:309.)

One of the best examples of fatherhood is our Father in heaven.  One of the best illustrations of this is found in the story of the Prodigal Son. I want us to notice a few characteristics about the father of this Prodigal Son. First, he was the provider of his family and stood answerable to God for the well being of his family. In the same way, fathers need to realize that they are to be the providers of their family and they stand accountable before God. In 1Timothy 5:8 we read these words, “But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.” Second, he provided an inheritance for his children.  In Proverbs 13:22 we read, “A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children’s children. . .” A good father wants to leave an inheritance for his children – both physically and spiritually. Third, he recognized his son’s right to choose his own path. Perhaps one of the hardest things for a parent to do is to let their children make their own decisions. Our Heavenly Father allows us to choose our own path and if we choose the wrong path we must pay the price. The prodigal son went as far into sin as a person can go. He had wasted his inheritance and now found himself sitting in a pigpen eating the scraps. He finally realizes that there is a way out of the mess that he had gotten himself into. He arose and started for home. There he found his father waiting for him with open arms. Wayward children always need to know they can come home. Fourth, this father was the priest of the family. He pointed the family in the right direction. He led the family in worship. When the prodigal son came to himself he remembered his father and most of all knew that his father still loved him. Today fathers need to be the priest of the home, giving spiritual guidance and love. Fifth, he prayed for his family. Fathers need to pray for their family. When the prodigal son came home his father was watching for him. He had been interceding in prayer for his son to return home. Sixth, he did not condemn or judge his son. He had compassion on his son. He was thankful that his son had come home and honored his return with a celebration. He restored him back to the family as a son rather than as one of the hired servants. And seventh, this father loved his children equally. He did not show favoritism between his two sons. He loved his older son who had chosen to stay with him. Even though the younger son had wasted his life, his father still loved him and did not hesitate to welcome him home. Regardless of whether a child chooses right or wrong, he or she still needs to know that dad loves them. Our Heavenly Father loves us even when we do wrong and when we repent His arms are open wide to receive us and to restore us without grudge or hesitation.

May I close my remarks this morning with a word of counsel that I have shared with several friends in these past few weeks about what it means to be a father? This counsel is based on my 48 years of life experiences and observances, and some of the counsel given to me by my own father through the years and some of the things that he taught me and I know to be true. This counsel is for all those who are now fathers and for those who will one day be righteous fathers in Zion.

My dear brethren,

Just because a male is biologically able to help create a new life, that in and of itself does not  make him a father, nor does it rightfully entitle him to the honor of bearing the title.

Before one can call themselves a father they must be willing to take on the responsibilities of being a father and demonstrate through their love, devotion, and commitment that they are ready to do those things which a FATHER is called to do.

Being a father is more than going to work and putting food on the table, providing shelter, and providing all the other necessities of life. A tremendous part of being a father is being there - in the good times as well as the bad, when the sun is shining its brightest and when the storms of life are raging all out of control.

Being a father means that you are the Patriarch and the Priest of your home. You are the literal mountain that your children run to for comfort in times of difficulties and heartaches when they feel that there is nowhere else for them to run to.

A father does not place the burden of carrying all of the cares and woes on the mother, but realizes that one cannot do it alone, but together, as father and mother, they can conquer the world.

A father shows his children that he loves their mother, that she is his equal, that she is indeed the queen of their home and deserves all the honor, love, and respect that are due her.

A father is also a leader. He doesn't just tell his children what to do, but through his example, through the righteous life that he lives, he teaches his children how to do things the right way. He is there when they make mistakes and stumble and fall as they will and picks them up, dust them off, and starts them on their way again.

A father does not expect perfection because he himself realizes that he is not perfect but is forever in the process of striving to become perfect. He himself, even with the wisdom of all of his years realizes that he is still but a student in the school of life. There are many more things that he himself needs to learn.

I am truly grateful for my earthly father and for all of the time, love and patience that he gave me during the 48 years and 1 month that we shared together here on earth as father and son. He truly helped mold me into the person that I am today. I am thankful to have had a father that prayed daily for me. I am thankful that even in times when I may have totally blown it, he was always there for me. I always knew I had a home to go to and that he would be there to welcome me. I guess that you could say that in some ways my dad was one of biggest heroes. I am also eternally grateful for a loving Heavenly Father that guides my footsteps along life’s pathways. He is the very reason for my existence and I love Him dearly. That I may one day through the righteous example of my earthly father and with the help and guidance of my Heavenly Father become a righteous husband and father in Zion is my humble prayer in the sacred name of our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ. Amen.  

Tags: Fathers Patriarchs Priests

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