Room in Our Dad's House

With Father’s Day upon us, it’s natural for many of us to think back to our childhood days with our dads.  Many of my memories of my dad (who passed away in May 2014) are tied to the house in which my siblings and I grew up. In fact, once having purchased that house in 1963 (for $19,000!), it was the only house my dad would live in for the rest of his life.

Having been built in the 1920’s there was always lots of work to be done around the house.  And, although he grew up in an apartment in the Bronx, somehow my dad learned how to do plumbing, electrical work, and roofing. He even figured out how to lay a foundation and put up walls—all from books and magazines (after all, this was long before YouTube!). Somehow he figured out how to close in the screened porch to add a family room and how to expand the garage to make room for all of our stuff!

The house I grew up in...3 Park Ave. Monsey, NY 

Most of all, I remember my dad adding bedrooms to the house as our family grew. Originally the upstairs of the house had two bedrooms and an enclosed sun porch.  One bedroom was for my parents and the other for “the kids” (my two sisters and me). In 1967, when the fourth child, my first brother, was born, dad took the sun porch and turned it into a bedroom for my brother and me.  Now we had three bedrooms—one for my parents, one for my two sisters, and one for “the boys.”  In 1971, when my mom became pregnant with my youngest brother, Dad had to figure out a way to sleep a family of seven.  That’s when he took what had been a landing area on the second floor and enclosed it to create a bedroom that was about 6’2’’x 6’2’’ with a small closet. That room became my bedroom through my teen years.  In the end, we all had a place to sleep, hang, play, etc.  There was room for each one of us in our dad’s house!   

Jesus said,  “Do not let your hearts be troubled, Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms…I am going there to prepare a place for you.”  (John 14:1-2 – NIV) In other words, just as my dad made sure there was a place for each one of his children in his house, God has a place for each one of his children in his house. No one is going to be left out. No one is going to be told that there is no more room. And in fact, right now Jesus is helping prepare that room for you and for me!

Let’s live our lives trusting God, knowing that there will be room for each one of us in our Dad’s house! 

Have a great day…and, Happy Father’s Day to all the dads!

Pastor Tim Harris