Daily Manna from Heaven

“Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” -Ephesians 6:4

Have you ever looked at a baby and commented, “He looks exactly like his daddy!” And why not? He is the genetic offspring, a chip off the old block, the spitting image of his father, right? There’s more to it than that, so believes a new theory posed by Dr. Nicholas Christenfeld, a psychologist. His theory holds that the father confers a genetic trait—face genes that make the baby’s face resemble his. “While a mother can be quite sure that the baby is hers no matter what it looks like, the father cannot,” says Dr. Christenfeld. He continues, “It should then be to a baby’s advantage to look like the father, to encourage paternal investment.”

In a study reported by Nature magazine, Christenfeld had 122 people match photos of children ages 1, 10, and 20 to that of their father. Matching the photos at ages 10 and 20 was rare, but people could consistently match the photos of the one year olds—both sons and daughters—to their fathers.

While it is uncertain just how much that research project cost and what it actually proves, it shouldn’t come as a great shock to you to learn that it is not uncommon at all for the offspring to resemble the father. How the resemblance continues in life may well be a reflection of habits and learning as well as heredity.

A child learns half of everything he knows by age three, three-fourths by age seven—so say authorities on behavioral learning. This, of course, doesn’t apply to the total amount of knowledge which a person acquires in life, but to the limits of behavior, the framing of an understanding of right and wrong, and a knowledge of what life is about.

The gift of a baby is a marvelous blessing. To see that little child begin to develop, to think, to learn, to respond, knowing that you are the one who stands between that child and disaster is an awesome as well as challenging responsibility.

Like father, like son, we often say, meaning that the offspring is reproducing the behavior or lifestyle of the father. Dads today who are constantly separated from their offspring because of their work are missing a large part of the teaching-learning process. It is no wonder that in rural areas where children grow up on farms, learning to work with their parents, the kids have far fewer problems growing up than where dads disappear on a commuter train before dawn and get home late at night, or are simply not there because Mom and Dad couldn’t get along.

The influence of a father in the life of a youngster is profound. “OK,” you say, “I agree, but that doesn’t change my situation. What can I do to maximize my influence in the life of my child?”
Try these guidelines for starters.

Guideline #1: Be there when you can. If you have a choice of working late at the office, or taking it home, opt for working at home. Just being there makes a difference.

Guideline #2: Think through your priorities. Wise is the dad who includes the effect on his kids in the equation of a job change. There are no second chances for some things which include watching your son play soccer or catching his first fish.

Guideline #3: Decide what is important. Putting your family first means your job comes second. And those who do prioritize their lives still make it to the top and manage to cover the mortgage. If Jesus were alive today I believe He would say, ‘What shall it profit a man if he shall gain the company presidency and lose his family? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his family?”

**Permission to reprint this article is hereby granted by Guidelines, Inc.**

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When the Viet Nam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son.    

About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door.  A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands. He said, “Sir, you don’t know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life.  He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly. He often talked about you, and your love for art.    

The young man held out his package. “I know this isn’t much. I’m not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this.”    

The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture.

“Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me.  It’s a gift.”   

The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected.

The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection. On the platform sat the painting of the son.

The auctioneer pounded his gavel. “We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?”

There was silence. Then a voice in the back of the room shouted. “We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one.” But the auctioneer persisted. “Will someone bid for this painting? Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?”  

Another voice shouted angrily.  “We didn’t come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Goghs, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!” But still the auctioneer continued. “The son!  The son!  Who’ll take the son?”

Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room.  It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. “I’ll give $10 for the painting.” Being a poor man, it was all he could afford.  “We have $10, who will bid $20?”

“Give it to him for $10. Let’s see the masters.”

“$10 is the bid, won’t someone bid $20?”

 The crowd was becoming angry. They didn’t want the picture of the son. They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections.   

The auctioneer pounded the gavel.  “Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!” A man sitting on the second row shouted. “Now let’s get on with the  collection!”  

The auctioneer laid down his gavel. “I’m sorry, the auction is over.”

“What about the paintings?”  

“I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings. The man who took the son gets everything!”    

God gave his son 2,000 years ago to die on a cruel cross.

Much like  the auctioneer, His message today is, “The son, the son, who’ll take the  son?”  Because you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything.

“For God so loved the world,

that He gave His only begotten Son,

that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.”

-John 3:16-

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