Father’s Day isn’t quite the retail event that Mother’s Day is with flowers, cards, candy and such, but you can’t deny the impact that fathers have on children, positive or negative. And whether a person is a father or not, almost all of us have roles in leading others, whether as fathers, grandfathers, mentors, supervisors or teachers. That’s why we can say that the Apostle Paul provides a good example of fatherhood. Although Paul was not a father in the biological sense, he was certainly a spiritual father and leader to many.

In 1 Thessalonians 2:7 he wrote that he had been gentile among them “like a mother caring for her little children” and then in verse 11 he said, “For you know we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children.” Throughout the rest of this section of 1 Thessalonians 2, we can find some excellent suggestions for fathers and leaders.

A first characteristic fathers and leaders should have is the ability to express genuine affection. In verse 8 Paul says “we loved you so much.” The word Paul uses is interesting. It is only used here in the whole New Testament. It means “to yearn for” or “long for” something. Paul wanted his readers to know that he cared so much for them that he longed to be near them. Expressing affection is an important lesson most fathers can learn because expressing affection doesn’t seem to come naturally for most men. But those around you, those you lead need to know that you care about them.

These verses also show us that Paul was living a transparent life. In verse 8 he wrote “we…shared with you not only the Gospel of God but our lives as well….” Paul didn’t just teach and preach, he lived an exemplary life and asked people to watch what he did. That can be a hard thing to do, but it is a goal every leader needs to have.

Another characteristic Paul displayed was an unselfish diligence. In verse 9 Paul refers to working “night and day” for their sake. This was more than just hard work, however, because he was working hard for the benefit of others. Working unselfishly to meet the needs of others can be hard to do, but it is an important example to show and a significant lesson to teach.

These verses also reveal a man who was walking with the Lord. Verse 10 says, “You are witnesses, and so is God of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed” Living transparently in front of those we lead reveals the values we possess. What we want people to see are genuine spiritual values. We want them to see us walking with the Lord. And that means living our faith isn’t just something we do on Sunday or for “church times” but all the time.

The last characteristic in this section is the positive influence Paul possessed. In verse 12 he refers to his role of “encouraging, comforting and urging” them to live lives worthy of God.” Sometimes fathers think their role in parenting is to toughen kids up and to teach them how to work hard. Certainly there are lots of lessons to teach, but one lesson we mustn’t forget is to teach and lead those who follow us to live lives worthy of God.