Father to the Fatherless

When I felt God wanted me to do a sermon for the youth, I argued with God and, of course, lost the argument. Fatherlessness is a topic I know all to well. So much of my childhood lacked my dad. I know the ramifications of that deeply and personally. I recognize the signs of it in others. I can see the consequences of fatherlessness in my daughters and their friends.
Now, my teenage daughters have a wonderful step-father. He has filled a vital role in their lives for ten years. And the girls are re-establishing a bond with their biological dad that was almost lost due to misunderstandings, distance, and pride. Yet, I know this sermon God told me to preach is just as much for them and me as it is for their friends and the other teens in the group.
I keep researching, and I keep having to stop and pray. This is a deep subject. Most Christians know that fatherlessness is a crisis in America and the world, but I don't think most of us truly focus on it with the intensity it deserves.
This is vital for our faith to continue on to the next generation. We need Fathers to step up to the plate and be Godly fathers again. We need Godly men to fill in the gap with teens and children where Fathers aren't there. We need Fathers that don't live with their children due to divorce or other reasons, and now serve God, to step up and beg God to show them ways to be a Godly father in their child's life as much as possible.
God says in Psalm 65 that he is a Father to the Fatherless. Who is out there making sure that kids know this? I see them looking to fill that void with everything else. Sex, cutting, drugs, anger, gossip...anything that will make them feel. They don't even have to feel good all the time. They just want to feel.
I was that girl. I clung to the first guy to give me attention. I didn't rebel in a lot of the ways I see kids doing now, but I made self-destructive decisions. I didnt have any respect for myself. I gave up goals and dreams for a guy cause I thought he would fulfill me in some way. No father ever told me that I was worth more than that. No Father ever told me that no person would ever fill that void. Only God can fill that void.
While there are many single-parent homeschools out there, statistically most are two-parent homes. For you homeschool dads and for all Christian dads, please understand the importance of your role. Your kids need you to be strong in Christ for them. They need you to show them how to love God. Your sons need you to show them how to be a Godly man and how to treat women with love and respect. Your daughters need you to give them love and respect, so they aren't looking for love from everyone else and so they will know how a man should treat them. Both sons and daughters will follow your example in their lives with their choices of serving God and in their choice of a spouse. Be a good example.