My little children let us not love in word, neither in tongue;
but in deed and in truth. (1 John 3:18)

Today is Father's' Day in many countries around the world. The modern idea of a day set aside for fathers came from a lady named Sonora Dodd, in Washington state. The idea came to her while listening to a Mother's Day Sermon in 1909, sitting in the pew of the African Methodist Episcopal Church where she was a member.

Mrs. Dodd wanted a special day to honor her father, William Smart. A Civil War veteran, Mr. Smart was widowed when his wife died while giving birth to their sixth child. He was left to raise the newborn and his other five children by himself on a rural farm in eastern Washington State.

After Sonora Dodd became an adult she realized the selflessness her father had shown in raising his children as a single parent, and the many sacrifices he had made for his children. Since her father was born in June, she chose to hold the first Father's Day celebration in Spokane, Washington on the 19th of June, 1910.

President Calvin Coolidge, in 1924, supported the idea of a national Father's Day. President Richard Nixon signed the law which finally made it permanent in 1972.

It seems to me that Father's Day is a good time to not only acknowledge what our earthly human fathers are to do for us, but also the look at the perfect the model of loving and sacrificial fatherhood we have in God, and the response He deserves from us in gratitude.

Jesus tells us that if our human fathers, who are fallen and sinful (like all people) can love us as much as they do, how much more does our heavenly Father love us?

God made the world in which we live. He gave us life itself, our families, friends. God gave us the beauty of colors and sounds. The beauties of the ocean, the mountains, the forest. God's love is found everywhere. But God also loves us enough to grieve over sins, to send his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ to die for us. God doesn't love us with mere words, but with deeds. Jesus teaches us that we are given the privilege to call God "Father."

If you have been brought to repentance and redemption by the sovereign grace of God, then you have a "spiritual Father" that should be even more important to you than an earthly parent is to his or her child. In like manner, you should desire to walk after, and to imitate, your Heavenly Father. In our Epistle this morning In Ephesians 5:1-2 St. Paul writes "Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savor.

St. John tell us that God is love. (I John 4:8) For a Christian, born into the family of God, and therefore being a partaker of God's divine nature (II Peter 1:4), to not be loving is to fail to be an imitator or a follower of our Father. It has been well said that, in the New Covenant, love is not something – love is the thing.

This morning we honor our fathers, and we honor the Father of us all, the One whom human fathers should emulate. Indeed all of us should learn to love others the way God loves us.

As our children head off for summer camp this morning let us pray that they may grow in grace and knowledge of God the Father, that they might be drawn closer to Him, might come to better know His love, and to learn how to love in deed and truth through the experience of camp.

God wants everyone to know and accept His love. Sometimes Christians let other things get in the way, and forget that we are called to shares that love with others. God also wants us to share that love all the time, no matter where we are.

So this morning we want to pray for a safe journey to and from camp, and a safe week there. Pray for the camp leaders and counselors, and for a joyful time, for fellowship, fun and for spiritual growth.

This is a wonderful time for our children to learn about God's love. It begins with the love that was offered by all who have helped make the trip possible. Let us pray that it is a wonderful, life-changing experience for the children.

The Psalmist writes "we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done." (Psalm 78:4)

My little children let us not love in word, neither in tongue;
but in deed and in truth.