Someone defined fathers as "men who give their daughters away

to other men who aren't nearly good enough so that they can have

grandchildren who will be smarter than anyone else's."

I realize that I'm a week early, but I wanted to give tribute

to Dads and this is the way the column rotation fell. Dads are special,

also, but don't always get the attention they need nor the credit

they deserve, and Father's Day is usually overshadowed by Mother's

Day.

Most wise dads understand their place. I heard about one dad who won

a video game in a door prize drawing and he called his five children

together and asked them to help decide who should get the game.

"Who is the most obedient," he asked. "Who

never talks back to his mother? Who does everything she says?"

The five children answered

in unison, "You do, Dad. You get the

prize." One wise senior adult who was celebrating his 50th anniversary

was asked the secret of their long marriage. He replied, "I learned

a long time ago, you can be right or you can be happy."

Most dads understand that

the best gift they can give their children is to love their mother.

Dads have great intentions, but I admit, some

of us are sort of slow sometimes. A husband and wife were attending a

marriage seminar dealing with communication, and the instructor asked

the husbands, "what is your wife's favorite flower?"

The well-meaning husband

leaned over to his wife, gently stroked her arm, and tenderly asked, "It's Pillsbury, isn't

it?"

Dads know, also, that their

children think "love" is spelled "t-I-m-e." One

corporate executive who said his 5-year-old daughter was the most important

part of his life, realized that he usually went to work before she got

up in the morning and often returned home after she was in bed at night.

So to spend time with her, he took her to the office with him one Saturday.

After looking around his office, she asked, "Daddy, is this where

you live?"

One of the biggest regrets

fathers have when their children are grown and gone is not spending

enough time with them when they could have.

Pastor Robert Schuller once shared that even though he enjoyed golf immensely,

he decided to be a failure at golf. He said, "I chose to fail at

golf because I wanted to succeed as a father." He decided that he

couldn't give the time to golf that he needed to devote if he was

going to be the father he wanted to be.

That's one important

thing I remember about my father. He was always there for me and my

brothers. He was in the back yard playing

catch at the end of a long day at work. He was at little league baseball

games even when I usually struck out. He was in the audience at every

band concert. He was in the stands on Friday nights when the band was

marching. He was on the pew with us every Sunday. He was at the table

at every meal. And he was by my side on my wedding day. He was totally

devoted to my mother. And he loved the Lord.

George Herbert said, "One father is better than a hundred school

masters." My father taught me a lot. He taught me to love the Lord,

to love the church, and to love my family. He taught me to sing the old

hymns with gusto. He taught me to pray publicly. He taught me the importance

of being in church Sunday morning, Sunday night and Wednesday evening.

He taught me to be honest. He taught me to enjoy people. He taught me

a love of baseball. He taught me by setting a good example.

Now I have the privilege of being a father. What an awesome responsibility!

I pray that my kids will remember their dad was there for them, loved

them dearly, and lived a life that taught them right from wrong and pointed

them to a solid relationship with the Lord.

(Dr. David L. Chancey is pastor, McDonough Road Baptist Church. The

church family meets at 352 McDonough Road and invites you to join them

this Sunday for Bible study at 9:45 a.m. and worship at 10:55 a.m.).