Gentlemen,

As the leader of an international ministry to fathers and sons, I am often asked what our needs are. My reply is usually that all of our needs are met by God, and we satisfy our wants and desires as God provides the resources. While this may sound like a trite answer, it is also a guiding principle by which we run this ministry. We’ve taught the same principle to our children and perhaps you will find this useful in your family as well.

Let me start by defining a “need” as the Scriptures do. As I understand God’s Word, the only things really necessary in life are food, drink, and clothing or shelter. God has promised to provide these “needs” in the often quoted verses in Matthew 6:25-33.

Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?

Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Thus, everything that I perceive as a “need,” if it is not one of the three items listed above is really a want or a desire. This clearly delineates between what God has promised – to meet my needs – and what He actually provides. We then can conclude that everything God provides over and above what is necessary to sustain life is given for the work of His ministry. From this we derive one of our ALERT Cadet guiding principles, “We will run, or make progress, at the rate which God provides resources (people, time, money).”

To properly lead ALERT Cadet we make plans for 3-5 years ahead and as James 4 reminds us, we then say, “God willing,” we will accomplish them. We recognize God’s leading to complete those plans based on the resources He provides. What I think should get done in 2009 may not agree with God’s desires as determined by the resources He provides. On the other hand, He may desire us to complete items sooner than we had originally planned by providing resources more abundantly!

You may be thinking, “That is great for running a ministry, but what does it look like in a family?” Actually, it is very similar. Once my children understood that all Mom and Dad were required to provide for them, as God’s representatives, were their needs, it changed their way of thinking. They really did not “need” nearly so much as they thought they did. We were then, as a family, better able to prioritize the family resources when we all realized that the items requested were really wants or desires and not actual needs.

In discipline situations with our children, we simply removed some of their desires or wants and reduced our support to just their basic needs. If a child was ungrateful for the food prepared, or did not eat what was offered, his menu became very simple to meet his basic needs, while the rest of the family continued to eat normally, including tasty desserts! If beds were not made, children lost the privilege of sleeping in them and instead were in sleeping bags on the floor. If clothing was not picked up and put away, it was removed to a storage area where it could later be redeemed or if not redeemed, given away until the child’s wardrobe became very simple and met their needs. The fact that clothing was not taken care of properly signaled to us either a training issue or that they did not appreciate what they had. The former resulted in further training and laundry duty for the entire family, while the latter resulted in giving their clothing to others in God’s family who could better use them.

God is teaching me to be grateful for the resources He provides.  I am learning how to receive those resources from others so that God’s work may go forward at the pace He provides for our desires.  This year we desire to do the following:

• strengthen the existing units in the US, Malaysia, and Singapore,
• expand further into Mexico, and
• introduce ALERT Cadet into Christian schools in Indonesia.

We will do so at the pace God provides the resources to do so. May God be praised for the works He has done through His servants.

Thanks for listening and thanks for allowing me to share with you each month. I receive many comments and encouragements as these letters go out. Please feel free to comment or write me at cadets@alertacademy.com.

Stay in the battle!

Roger D. Farr

ALERT Cadet Commanding Officer