March 22 “The Day My Father Cried…” Ephesians 6:1-3
EASTER ANNOUNCEMENT: On April 17, 2022, we will have a “SONRISE” Service. It will begin at 7:00am, and there will be a biscuit and coffee breakfast provided.
ANNOUNCEMENT: Baptist Tabernacle Church will be 100 years old, in 2022. A grand celebration is planned for May 22, 2022, to commemorate the first service as an organized church body! Special information, recognitions, God’s Word, and a catered meal (Parker’s BBQ) will be a part of the celebration. Please mark your calendars and plan to attend the festivities. IMPORTANT … **Please RSVP to Ashelyn (Church Secretary), at 919-365-5558 or baptisttabern621@bellsouth.net **
Good morning from Pastor Glen Brock, Baptist Tabernacle Church, Wendell, North Carolina… “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother,’ which is the first commandment with promise: ‘that it may be well with you, and you may live long on the earth.’” (Ephesians 6:1-3)
When I was younger, I thought that boys and grown men shouldn’t cry, much less show that they can be reduced to tears. The tears were signs of being weak and a sissy, which a man isn’t supposed to be, supposedly! But in January of 1969, I discovered that courage isn’t all about trying to keep all the pain inside, in check. Courage isn’t all about trying to hide the tears. It’s the opposite – the tears reinforce the heart’s courage. I saw this in my father! My Grandfather, that had been abusive to my grandmother, and to his children, and because of his destructive actions, my Daddy and his baby sister were placed in the Baptist Orphanage at Kennedy Home, near LaGrange, North Carolina. This “grandfather,” in name only, died alone, on January 5, 1969. When the word came that he had died, my daddy did what he would always do in a crisis, he started taking care of the arrangements, along with his brothers and sisters. The day came for the funeral, and we sat in church, side by side, with other family members, and I kept my eyes on daddy. His face was firm and “stone-like,” and his focus was on the casket, not the long-winded minister or the music. I could only imagine what he was thinking. Regardless of the past circumstances, Daddy and Mama always opened our home to granddaddy, when he was in need. I used to wonder why daddy was so willing to do this, when his daddy had been such a terrible example of fatherhood! We left the church and made that long walk to the family plot, in the cemetery at Daly’s Chapel Church. The wind had a January chill and the minister continued to be “long-winded,” and there was the noise of a tractor, in the distance, that was competing with the barking of a stray dog, yet I was focused on my daddy! Wait! It could not be! My daddy was crying! How could he cry for this man? What could he possibly be thinking? On the way back to my uncle’s house, where the family was gathering, I mustered up the courage to ask him why he had cried at the graveside. He responded, in a gentle and comforting voice, “Son, regardless of how he acted or treated me, because I am a Child of God, I must honor my father!” I said, “Daddy, but…” He interrupted and said firmly, and fatherly, “No Buts!” I reached up and placed my 12 years old hand on his shoulder, and he reached back and covered my hand with his, and he said something that will remain with me forever. He said that the week before, he had stopped by to visit his daddy, and they had a serious talk about the past, and about forgiveness, and about his soul’s condition, and daddy led his daddy to receive Jesus, that day! It has been years since I laid my hand on my father’s shoulder, but the lesson that he taught me, that day, and the lessons from all the days before and up until his passing, remain with me, still today! I saw courage, that day, when my father cried! I saw strength when my hand was on his shoulder, and I understood his pain, and his joy, and the reason for his obedience! Friends, we are called to be obedient, regardless of the circumstances, regardless of what we see! God Promised, I Believe, and I am Counting on His Grace! Stay Strong, Stay Focused…THE BEST IS YET TO BE! (Reprint)