The Legacy of a Godly Dad

But what I can do it. Thank God this is Brent not working the way I needed the work, but I can talk to and I learned how to communicate because that's how my dad would do it. There's nothing like the influence of a godly father, especially when the models how to pray for his children.

That's our topic today your hostess focus presidents and other Jim Daly and I'm John that's so true John and our guest is Brent Reeves who is paying tribute to his father, the founder, Smokey Jones barbecue in Dallas and that's a family-run restaurant that has a reputation for serving up brisket with a side of Holy Spirit and printer sharing what he learned about life and faith from his dad. This is really touching in here now is Brent Reeves speaking to a group of men at an event hosted by wingmen ministries on Focus on the Family will allow me to make her day you don't mind like to start off with the word press okay. Thank you for this day. Thank you for this amazing group of men, I thank you God for what you doing each of their lives.

Thank you God for the hunger that you put inside of them for you. Thank you for this amazing organization. Father God for how they are reaching people across this world probably got I think you God for the heart of this ministry, father, and I pray that you continue to work, your grace, your goodness and mercy over every one of them and I pray finally got that you have something that you have specifically for each one to receive an thank you for these things in Jesus name.

So that was intense, that was intense since I was to dad was always on 10. Never had, you know you know some people have like a calm, no not dead.

530 in the morning I will do seven and you hear that from downstairs and we would all be sleep. Dad didn't care because he's on the phone he pays all the bills sages learn how to how to sleep over his conversations. He was amazing father and I tell you what you know I'm missing like crazy.

The man that made a difference in my life passed away and probably the most difficult day of my life who thinks Superman dies.

He never thinks Superman is going to die, but that's something that many of you in this room. Maybe Vardy face.

If you haven't faced it. It's a turning point.

It's a turning point. Some men struggle with the idea or the concept of God and you know why because most of them don't have a relationship with their father, their natural father. So when you tell me this is God's heavenly father, who is leading me got injury and directed me and the only guy that I knew there was a father sat around the house all day work during the week had some beers on the weekend as difficult for me to hear this whole sovereign faithful God.

I didn't have. I totally understood God because of the man that was my father. He showed who God was. Every single day was not everyday because you know we had some imperfection.

Susie it wasn't Jesus lying to me very, but he tried his best to live according to how the Bible wants us to live and he always tried to make it different to make an impact on our lives every single day. He was very intentional and that I want to share something with you guys that I learn from the man, the father of my house that impacted my life.

One of these, but my dad if you know you has been a winger he's been hit you just begin with 55 years. Maybe longer. That this brother could pray. I mean if you knew dad dad could pray you would not get off the phone with him without him, praying for you and what I learned was you know what is mean, we've got a pray and not just when something is wrong with praying daily and continue to lift up our issues, our families are concerned with got up right. We gotta get the weights up because a lot of times guys we walk around a lot of burdens we walk around a lot of weight and live times guys don't want to talk about which I just go along.

Because you know what, usually, nobody cares I'm wrong. Nobody cares things going our lives every day and we take on more and more burden, but we don't share anything anything we have to do is begin a share with God. At least someone they can take all your burdens and then do something about it but we don't take the time. Sometimes a pray brother brother brothers we need we need each other.

We got a pray shed just a few minutes ago before I say cannot pray with you before before you speak child you don't know my dad used to do that anytime before I was speak and this is the first time I've ever spoken and he didn't pray with before. So when you stepped up and you said that you understand that was him because he would not let anything happen in anyone's life without the power of prayer with one thing I thought was amazing that my dad was how he he learn how to praise my grandfather. My grandpa was a sharecropper he and Dangerfield East Texas grandfather would get 80 acres together. He would get everything ready and dad would watch him do the same thing every year. Pop would get on his knees and this is how he would pray. They say God is bowed here till the ground got all plowed up.

I put the seeds out. I got everything ready. The rest is yours. All of what I did, means nothing if you don't bring the rain I need rain God. I appreciate you. I thank you for sending the rain and I thank you for the harvest, it would only a man that's all he learned how to pray change my life because how is it seeing people prayers dear auspicious heavenly either. You know, man. I don't I have that many low words. My vocabulary, but what I can do is say God this is Brent Stubbs not working the way I needed to work my life is getting on my nerves today. Can you help her well help me help me deal with her, but I can talk to them and I learned how to communicate because that's how my dad would do it. I we were getting up.

It for 5 o'clock in the morning and I see the light on downstairs house doing man will world down there for about five years old is not really first saw dad pray he had a chair that he had sitting right in the middle room and he would sit on his and he be on his knees and he lay in the chair like this and he just pray out loud.

See, I didn't know that the reason why we were eating so many chopped beef sandwiches every day was because that was broke. He had decided to close the bars and clubs and went completely bankrupt. So what we had was what we were serving at the restaurant I was about sick a chopped beef sandwiches, but I didn't know that that's what we had, but he would be down in that chair going God I don't know how we don't do Christmas this year. I don't have anything. Is that any way that you can make a way for me and my family few weeks. Light all of a sudden someone I know this, but there, he was preparing us for this solemn Christmas and then all of a sudden Chris was more awake up and there were more gifts around the tree that had ever seen in my life never seen this man, this is a most memorable Christmas still in my mind I'm 42 years old and I still remember the four-wheel Tonka truck right by the tree because that's what I wanted but I knew was Noel going to get it because we were struggling somehow.

Years later I found out that someone had given him $5000 saved by everything you can for your kids out of the blue, but you know how that happened. Prayer.

Prayer he taught me how to pray. Another thing he taught me how to do was build relationship relationships that everything sometimes you may not have a certain connection order something you specifically need and you can't get it anywhere else.

But maybe if you know somebody maybe something can happen for you. Dad knew that he knew the power of building relationships and build relationships. Not necessarily for something, but because because he knew he had something to offer and he knew that someone else had something to offer him.

Why, because the power of God is in everyone of anything today that you may be lacking to you may have.

But if you never talk to each other and if you never have that connection. If you never reach out to see Bill how's everything going real, how you doing today Bill, if I don't do that I don't reach out to you build a relationship that I'll find out what's going on in your life and I'm walking around aimlessly like I don't care, and what I'm doing is I'm missing opportunities to make an impact in somebody else's life. One of the things that dad taught me this is a rough tell me how to be truthfully like raw till the raw truth at the Harlem that's a hard one for me because I like her people feel but dad did not have that in him. He didn't care. I member people used to get him do marriage counseling for and I think to myself, why did you ask him to give you marriage counseling because he wasn't you know skilled and have the wisdom we measured 43 years maybe all the lights in the world.

Why did you want to talk to him. He still be brutally honest. I remember hearing a time or two. Have a little bit of a session going with someone back in that meeting room at the restaurant and eyes talking to the brother and brother was talk about all the stuff that was going on his life and was having his relationship.

So dad just said that you listen to school okay okay he looked at the guy said so you know what you probably don't and the guy goes well smoke at all and I don't know smoke. I don't know that life sentences well you stupid you say stupid stuff you do stupid stuff you say stupid stuff to your wife is in the guy was like an ox is still smoking but is elusive. Go home, washed dishes for your wife some flowers and stop being stupid. I know from what I could do. He could do that.

A friend of mine had a restaurant and he goes into this restaurant just grand opening great place comes in their dad taste the food that sit down because like the next day and the gases of Mrs. Logan how do you like food is a man what negative brother what good you need to put more paper in your Caesar salad because it is nasty so dad dies August 24. That guy comes to the restaurant to see me and he's like crying an ongoing UK is crying brother was a man that wanted to talk with the value of intelligence through we gotta be able to be honest with each other. We gotta be able to tell each other the truth.

Sometimes it's hard and they will ask you for advice. They really don't wanted, but as you guess one. What's the worst thing is going to happen they don't come back to you may want to know no more questions landlord must go tell me the truth right by iron sharpens iron. Iron sharpens iron and the truth is sharpening for you when people go around and we we will have it is okay and this is not nobody, there's no integrity. The one thing that you'll know about smoky about myself. I'm gonna take truth so if you really want to know asked me and always respect I asked my team members that there are restaurant estate. Tell me what you think. They don't get too carried away with tell me, tell me a little bit of what couple other things that he taught me that was great about this. He didn't judge it and judge Eli in judging he needed to much grace himself and his men.

We need grace, but you know we also need to do. We need to give grace we need to give grace were so hard on each other times were hard on each other will give guys space find out I got messed up again. I made a mistake guy what fell off the wagon was sober for 10 years and in messed up man. How did you do that, no brother, it's all right it's all right start over again start over if you messed up just that one time in 10 years. How good is that compared to how you were before. The team figure out a way to give grace. One of things and that would tell me was he say son I'm not going with the Holy Spirit in your life that change that that hit me, and it shall be how I needed to talk to others on how to share with others. I cannot be the Holy Spirit in somebody else's life, I can encourage you I can correct but I'm not going judge to many of us do that and then we push guys away and then the same space is no longer safe because a guy feels that he can't come in and be honest because he's going to be judged. That's why you see a lot of those not going to church at top because I feel like they can be judged with God and give people space we have to give people room for God to do his thing in their lives.

The best thing we can do is continue to be the example that we saw Christ, and we we continue to be that same example and hopefully we can impact others not judge but be an example give each other grace. I think the most powerful thing about dad that I went through this we did that his lessons in his example hit me so much was this year that trusted God.

You can't pray like that and expect something if you don't trust you got trust. Sometimes there are things that happen in our lives that are so tragic or destructive or damaging that there is no way in our minds we can see how were going to get out of any you guys been doing those situations. Yeah. Has God brought you out heavy brush out in the way they like there's no way that this can ever happen. There's no way I could've even gotten out of this vision, we had our 2017 were in a record-breaking year for smoking John's barbecue and I get a phone call in the middle. About 5 o'clock and tell me work that the restaurant is on fire and is not good that's not so I get there. They block Mockingbird off. That's a bad sign billionaire firefighters. You know that's a bad sign. If they block the main street off and you can't get there and it's your place.

That's a bad sign. So I finally told one of the firefighters in the let me in there and the guys I get there. How bad is it. He says well they lost everything. Whoever man, it's terrible. It horrible again, you leave me any hope brother like there's a little bit maintenance I get there 33 alarm fire fire truck coming there everywhere did through that whole situation of being devastated and three days later, the insurance company shows up and they like egg all man is the total loss here public. Is anybody have any compassion at all or is this is how you doing nowadays you so why get through it.

We would finish up and the guy says well looks like you got about $56,000 on your policy. $56,000 this a total loss.

Thank you. Well, looks like half your policy was negated by a clause in your lease are $300,000 policy was cut down to $56,000 – said, all while as roofs on.

I think he was like, I'm glad I gave you the business at that point you get to trust God son did you trust him right now and you know what he sat back and he said I want you to handle this.

Have you ever read a book called the circle maker. If you ever find that book is one of the most powerful books I've read, the circle like a book he talks about putting your request down, encircling them and pray in a circle and a protection over what it use it you ask for our that you believe in God for you circle and what I realize to that process was. I was giving over my cares and issues and worries over that circle and given it to God. So I went through this process and I was there were days where I couldn't eat or my stomach was in knots because we have 20 different employees that are not working as the weeks came to Going. I started to find out that there were other things that we had with insurance companies started to change their mind by the end of the time. I'm praying, I'm believe in God, my brother and I are praying – praying we come back and at the end of last year. The insurance company since the check for the full amount plus that was God there is no way in the world that we could've gotten without trust God. But we couldn't have done it. Had we not had I not seen that example of trusting God with him and one of the things that dad would do is he would just stand firm and what he was believing forward God because what he how he did was he would pray the word back to God, he would pray he was that you said in your word like if we if we seek then we will find if you not adorably open ask you will receive and he will speak the word back to God I tell you what God performs his own word all time. But we have to be put in position. Sometimes we have to trust those five things as I look at those things I realize that through my father, God showed me himself and as a mere man if I saw those qualities, how much more as I have, so those who don't have a father never had a father.

There is one that's greater than any earthly man and that heavenly father is wanting to do for you everything you need. He wants to take you from one level to the next and he wants to change your life Because he wants other people's life to change by watching you guys are doing an amazing job because you got a man in his 70s to draw from Oak Cliff to grapevine you must be doing some special. I appreciate you guys and thank you for the opportunity restrict day-to-day thanks to wingman ministry providing us with this message from restaurant tour Reeves of smoking John's barbecue in Dallas. John, this was a great reminder of the influence that fathers have in the lives of their children and let me just add for the single moms out there. We know that you would love to have a godly man provide that kind of mentoring to your kids if their dad is not in the picture is not a believer in my heart goes out to you. Let me encourage you to pray and ask the Lord to provide that person for your children and if you need more help please give us a call and let us be there for you. Let me remind you her number is 800 the letter a in the word family 800-232-6459 and as we reach out to, hurting families, we also need your support.

We are a nonprofit ministry and we depend on your donations to keep everything going so please consider giving to Focus on the Family today and when you make a donation of any amount will send you the CD of this message from Brent Reeves and that'll be our way of saying thank you for joining us in ministry and you can reach us when you call 800 the letter a in the word family or follow the link in the episode notes and donate to the work of Focus on the Family when you get in touch next time Lisa Joe Baker joins us to share what she's learned about life as a seasoned wife and a mother of three teenagers the love stories that are the beginning, leading gone in like a heartbeat, then you got here's where the love stories in the trenches and suffer me has really been having eyes to see what love looks like there on behalf of Jim Daly and the entire team. Thanks for joining us for this Focus on the Family podcast if you would please take a moment or two can leave a ring in your podcast half that helps others find this great continent tell a friend about this episode, you know, that meets this kind of encouragement by John Fuller and fighting back next time. Once more help you and your family thrive in Christ