[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"\u002Farticles\u002Ftimely-fathering":3,"\u002Farticles\u002Ftimely-fathering-surround":67},{"id":4,"title":5,"author":6,"bibleBooks":8,"body":12,"columnName":49,"date":50,"description":18,"extension":51,"image":52,"meta":53,"minRead":54,"navigation":55,"path":56,"postType":57,"publication":58,"publicationUrl":52,"seo":59,"stem":60,"topics":61,"__hash__":66},"blog\u002Farticles\u002Ftimely-fathering.md","Timely Fathering",{"name":7},"Dave Faust",[9,10,11],"Acts","1 Corinthians","Galatians",{"type":13,"value":14,"toc":45},"minimark",[15,19,22,25,33,36,39,42],[16,17,18],"p",{},"Some cultures prize punctuality while others ignore it. I’ve been on mission trips where there was no reason to wear a watch and our carefully-planned schedules meant nothing. I’ve visited churches where if you asked what time the service started, the minister would smile and reply, “When everyone arrives.” I’ve also been to churches where every part of the service is timed to the minute and no preacher or song-leader dares to go overtime.",[16,20,21],{},"Personally, I hate to be late. Is this a mark of healthy self-control or a sign of sinful impatience? Probably some of both. Should I be more laid-back? Maybe. All I know is, I like it when meetings start and end on time. It bothers me when I am late for an appointment or when others keep me waiting.",[16,23,24],{},"Of course, some lateness is unavoidable. A traffic delay, bad weather, or a last-minute phone call can throw even the best time manager off schedule. Habitual tardiness, though, is another matter. Punctuality-freaks feel like asking our late-arriving friends, “Do you consider your time more important than everyone else’s?” Meanwhile, our laid-back family and friends ask, “Can’t you just relax a little and quit being so up-tight?”",[16,26,27,28,32],{},"Problems with punctuality plagued some characters in the Bible. Jesus told a story about some foolish virgins who didn’t plan ahead, so they had to go shopping for lamp-oil when they should have been ready for the bridegroom to arrive. Thomas was late for Easter, missing the disciples’ first encounters with the risen Christ. Paul thought of himself as one “untimely born” (1 Corinthians 15:7, ",[29,30,31],"em",{},"New American Standard",") because he came to faith in Christ long after the other apostles.",[16,34,35],{},"Our heavenly Father has a flawless sense of timing. He sent his Son “when the time had fully come” (Galatians 4:4) and he will bring about the end of all things at a time “set by his own authority” (Acts 1:7). Jesus displayed a keen sense of timing even though others didn’t understand it, occasionally observing that his “hour had not yet come.” When he learned that his friend Lazarus was sick, he waited four days to show up. To some it must have appeared he was behind schedule, but he was actually right on time. The Lord is seldom early but never late.",[16,37,38],{},"For dads who want to be more like our heavenly Father, it’s good to think about “timely fathering.” As a father, I not only need wisdom to discern the right thing to do; I also need God’s help to find the right time to do it. When is it time to comfort my children, and when is it time to confront them? When should I offer advice, and when should I bite my tongue? When should I send my daughter a card with a $100 check inside, and when should I let her face the consequences of a poor financial decision? When should I step in to defend my son, and when should I allow him to fight his own battles? God, help me to be a timely father.",[16,40,41],{},"I hate to be late, but someday I’m going to be. It will even be appended to my name. After I’m dead and gone, I’ll be known as “the late David Faust.” Then it will be too late to advise anyone, too late to hug anyone, too late to tell my children how proud I am of them and how much I love them.",[16,43,44],{},"I’d better do it now.",{"title":46,"searchDepth":47,"depth":47,"links":48},"",2,[],"Another Look","2010-06-20","md",null,{},3,true,"\u002Farticles\u002Ftimely-fathering","column","The Lookout",{"title":5,"description":18},"articles\u002Ftimely-fathering",[62,63,64,65],"Biblical Theology","Church Leadership","Holy Week and Resurrection","Intergenerational Ministry","Flay-aSpjtSkkWDT5yVUZzoWaOWWUxqRrha8Kruq_Bo",[68,73],{"title":69,"path":70,"stem":71,"description":72,"children":-1},"Time to Stretch","\u002Farticles\u002Ftime-to-stretch","articles\u002Ftime-to-stretch","After a long drive or a long night's sleep, it feels good to stretch your arms and legs. Coaches and physical therapists recommend taking time to stretch before you engage in strenuous exercise. It's unhealthy for any body to remain in the same position too long. That's even true for the body of Christ, the church.",{"title":74,"path":75,"stem":76,"description":77,"children":-1},"Tired?","\u002Farticles\u002Ftired","articles\u002Ftired","Aren't you getting tired of people complaining about how tired they are? Look around you today, and you're likely to see people who feel exhausted. According to a recent study conducted by the University of Maryland, 29 percent of Americans say they always feel tired, and 45 percent say they have felt a great deal or moderate amounts of stress in the past two weeks. Ironically, the same study found that the average amount of leisure time has increased from 34 to 40 hours per week since 1965. In an age of unprecedented technology and convenience, why are we so tired?"]