Draw Near – 365 Guides to Greater Intimacy with GodSample

PROVIDER AND PROTECTOR Both Judaism and Christianity depict God as a Father. Such a picture impresses one deeply with the uniqueness of the role fathers fill in life, for when God wanted man to know about Him, he called Himself the Father. When addressing or describing God, Jesus used the term Father more than almost any other. From the beginning, God established husbands and fathers to be both providers and protectors. The Bible has strong statements about those who refuse to fill the role of provider: But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever (1 Timothy 5:8). God created fathers to reflect His own fatherly nature and provision. Many youngsters have a tragically distorted picture of their heavenly Father because their earthly fathers do not present an image of love and responsibility. In addition to provider, God wants the husband and father to be a protector. The Bible says: Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered (1 Peter 3:7). The husband is to give his wife the support she needs. He is the shepherd of his family, protecting the sheep from the enemies.