Winning the Hearts of Your Sons and Daughters

“And He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” Malachi 4:6 (NKJV) 

As a dad and grandfather, I’ve come to appreciate a verse in Proverbs more and more the older I get: “Grandchildren are the crown of old men, And the glory of sons is their fathers.” Proverbs 17:6 (NASB) 

It grieves me to see a generation of children and parents estranged from one another by the lies of our culture.  We’ve put so much ahead of our most important relationships and sacrificed the greater joy and glory that could be ours for promises that can never deliver. But there is a verse at the very end of the Old Testament that gives me hope!  God promised that before “the great and dreadful day of the LORD arrives”, He would “turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to their fathers….” (Malachi 4:5-6)  

One of the great joys of ministry is getting to see that kind of reconciliation!  Not long ago, a single father in our church shared with me a huge turning point in the life of his son and daughter just before our Super Summer Baptism Celebration.  At the end of the service leading up to that weekend, he saw his fifteen-year-old son completing a baptism registration card. His son told him he wanted to be like him and be a Christian too, and that he wanted to take this step of obedience in being baptized.  That weekend, this gentleman’s son and daughter took the same step he had taken before them, as he watched with tears of joy!   

God is still turning the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers!  When it happens, it is the greatest joy either will experience!  If you want to win the hearts of your children, begin by reconciling your heart with your Heavenly Father.  In repentance, turn from the sin of going your own way and ask God’s forgiveness.  Then, ask Him to engineer the circumstances for you to reconnect with your son or daughter and establish a relationship that honors God.  Risk the awkwardness to admit your own failures and humbly ask forgiveness for the pain you created.  Don’t force the relationship but give room for God to work in both of your hearts.  

I hope you’ll join us at Woodlands Church for a special Father’s Day Weekend your whole family will enjoy!