And you know that we treated each of you as a father treats his own children. — 1 Thessalonians 2:11
The best inheritance a father can leave his children is a good example. A young woman relates that when she was a little girl, her father, an artist, would often be busy at his easel, mixing oils and painting on his big canvases while she sat nearby on the floor, working just as hard as he was with her own set of crayons and a coloring book.
Many a time, he would set his brushes aside, reach down, and lift her up onto his lap. Then he’d curl her little hand around one of his brushes, enfolding it with his own larger and stronger hand. And ever so gently, he would guide her hand and the brush, dipping it into the palette and mixing the burnt umbers and raw siennas, and then stroke the wet, shiny paint onto the canvas before them both.
The little girl watched in amazement as together, they made something beautiful.
Little did this father know that he was giving his daughter skills that would bring great fulfillment to her life. Today, Joni Erickson Tada—a quadriplegic since a diving accident during her teen years—is still painting, but this time with a paintbrush or artists’ pencil in her mouth. Much of her earnings is channeled into ministry to help others. Her compassion, too, is a reflection of that shown her by a loving, tender father.* Maranatha!
*God’s Little Devotional Book
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