Dads, You Need God More Than You Need Gemini

“Hey Google, what is the best way to grill frozen burgers?” Yes, I’m sure some of you are thinking my problem is that you shouldn’t ever grill frozen burgers. Don’t get distracted — I have a different point.

We constantly search Google or ask Gemini or ChatGPT how to solve a problem we face. All this comes with a risk. As men, we probably already have a tendency to think we can solve a problem on our own.

As dads, we’re often faced with simple questions that could make us feel quite confident in ourselves. With a little help from AI, it could be tempting to think there are no problems that we can’t solve. AI isn’t the problem – it can even be a useful tool.

The core of the problem

The problem is in our hearts. We tend to rely on ourselves first when we need to rely on God. Scripture teaches us that in order to live well in God’s world, we need God’s wisdom. In the life of Abraham, we see a serious warning for those who would trust their own wisdom to deal with the pressures of life.

Very early on in the life of Abraham (actually just the second story about him in Genesis), we find a stark contrast from his initial step of faith to leave his homeland and follow what God told him to do. In Genesis 12:10-20, he faces a famine. However, instead of calling on the name of the Lord as he did in the previous account (12:8) and as he will in 13:4, he just comes up with his own plan. It seems like Moses as the inspired narrator doesn’t want us to miss Abraham’s omission.

So what happens? Abraham chooses to engage in sinful deception. Instead of asking God for wisdom, he leaves the land, risks his wife’s honor, and causes curses (plagues) to fall on those who bless him. Each of these is a complete reversal of what God promised him at the beginning of chapter 12.

1. Failing to seek God in the pressures of life leads to sin.

That’s the bad news. But as every story demonstrates on God’s redemptive storyline throughout the Bible, there is good news. God is not done with Abraham. God graciously uses Pharaoh to preserve Abraham as he ensures his safety back into the land of Canaan. The next story of Abraham’s life proves another truth for us.

2. God calls his people back.

In Genesis 13, we find a complete turnaround in Abraham’s life. God brings him back to the place where he first built an altar. Abraham again calls on the name of the Lord. Trouble returns in the form of conflict with his servants and his nephew Lot’s servants. But this time, Abraham responds in faith by offering Lot whatever land he wants. He is confident in this moment that God can be trusted to fulfill His promise. God responds by showing Abraham the Promised Land. As the story ends in verse 18, Abraham is building an altar again and continuing to walk with God.

So why do we need these lessons from the life of Abraham? God has called us to walk by faith, but so often we depend on ourselves (+AI on occasion) when pressure comes in the broken world we live in. There are so many pressures that come up in parenting. As each child grows into a new level of development, we desperately need God’s wisdom to help us navigate how to carefully apply His Word in a way that is effective and appropriate to the situation.

In James 1:5-8, we find this promise:

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. (ESV)

We must make regular use of this promise if we desire to honor God in the way we lead in our homes and care for our families.

As you make decisions, realize that you must also entrust the results to God. Abraham took steps of faith and still encountered difficulty. James 4:13-15 calls us to make wise plans but entrust the results to God.

Where do you go from here?

• Start every day by asking God for guidance.
• When you face a difficulty with a spiritual implication, go to God before Google.
• Spend time growing in your grasp of the guidance He provides through His Word: meditate on it, listen to it, memorize it, read it and journal about what you are learning.
• If you know you haven’t been asking for his guidance, repent. God has graciously given us this story to shine a light into our lives.
• As you encounter pressures in parenting throughout each day, ask God for guidance in those moments. Stop and consider what truths from His Word might apply to how to proceed. Ask others that God has placed around you (especially in your local church!) for help in discerning how to follow God’s path instead of your natural inclination.