Location and Times
II Samuel 18:33 And the king was much moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept: and as he went, thus he said, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!
David loved his son Absalom, but he had failed to be expressive of that love. Now Absalom has been killed. David is mourning. Undoubtedly it was too late to be this passionate.
His son had disappointed him. His son had done several things to get his attention, but David was too focused on other things to pay attention. Finally, Absalom had utterly rebelled and kicked his dad from his throne. The army had ridden out and killed Absalom against his dad’s wishes. He is heartbroken.
As I read this story I think about the following for dads:
1. Are we dealing with things in our family when they should be handled? David had not punished Amnon, and this angered Absalom.
2. Do we hear our children’s cry for attention?
3. Do we express our love or just feel it deep down inside?
4. Do we let our guilty conscience keep us from dealing with things in the lives of our children that should be dealt with
5. Have we closed the doors to communication with our children instead of looking for every opportunity to win them back?
Photo by Tom Pumford on Unsplash