Father's Day is just around the corner - Sunday, June 21 - and is a special day set aside for us to celebrate and honor our fathers, grandfathers, and father figures.
While the Bible doesn't explicitly say anything about any day being set aside specifically to appreciate fathers, we can clearly see that God recognizes the importance of fathers - the God-given spiritual head of the family - and even gave them special honor throughout history.
In Proverbs, wisdom is given regarding the responsibilities of a godly father. For example,Proverbs 22:6 teaches, "Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it." A father likewise provides discipline to children (Proverbs 3:12).
The Law of Moses also gives instruction to fathers in Deuteronomy 6:6-7: "And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." The Bible tells us that fathers are to know God's Word, study it, teach it to their children, and be involved on a daily basis with their kids.
Ways to Celebrate Father's Day
Honor you father, husband, or father figure on this day by making him a handmade card, deliver breakfast in bed, or cook his favorite dinner. If your dad is sporty - take him fishing, golfing, camping, or go-karting. Dads that are musically-inclined may appreciate a good local concert or tickets to an upcoming music event.
Gift Ideas
If your dad is a reader, he may enjoy a personalized, leather-bound Bible or one of these devotionals from Family Christian Books. The tech-guru dad will appreciate this Fitbit One Wireless Activity + Sleep Tracker or Amazon Fire Stick, while the dad who loves to cook or grill will enjoy this Meat Cookbook, Carnivore Cookbook or HyperChiller ice-coffee maker. The outdoorsy dad will love this hammock, durable Native Union iPhone case, or Mercator K55K Knife
Father's Day Bible Verses
We've compiled a list of our top Father's Day Bible Bible verses for you to use in this year's cards and gifts to make your dad, grandfather, or father figure know how much he is loved. These passages are meant to highlight your father's unique role, importance, and value, not only in your eyes, but in the eyes of God.
"In the fear of the LORD one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge." [Proverbs 14:26 ESV]
"Love is patient; love is kind. Love is not jealous; is not proud; is not conceited; does not act foolishly; is not selfish; is not easily provoked to anger; keeps no record of wrongs; takes no pleasure in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth; love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things." [I Corinthians 13:4-7 NIV]
"For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring to Abraham what he has promised him." [Genesis 18:19 ESV]
"The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him." [Proverbs 23:24 ESV]
"The righteous who walks in his integrity- blessed are his children after him!" [Proverbs 20:7 ESV]
The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation." [Exodus 34:6-7 ESV]
"My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the LORD reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights." [Proverbs 3:11-12 ESV]
"And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction." [Malachi 4:6 ESV]
