My dad asked if I wrote him a blog post for Father's Day. I was surprised that he asked, especially because this year I was going for the "I'd rather tell you face to face how awesome you are than take up space on the internet and propagate more anti-social behaviour" thing. But hey, writing about my dad seemed like a good opportunity to involve The Father.
2 Corinthians 6:18 And I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty. (Amplified)
There is something about a dad's approval that sets it apart from the opinions and recognition of other figures. It carries more weight and it has a greater impact on your actions than you may acknowledge. Knowing that he reads everything I publish means a lot, and I bet my brother runs a little faster just because he knows dad is watching him on the track. His criticisms count more than any complement we would get from anyone else. His complements outweigh any criticisms we would get from anyone else.
This may sound like an obvious statement, but it is as if we were designed to be fathered. Like, as soon as we were born we were made to reach out to the place we felt most safe. Like, we were made to run towards open arms. Like, we were meant to make someone proud without having to do anything extraordinary. Like, we were meant to be swept up in unconditional love without having to secure it. Like, blessings were meant to run over us without us having to do anything to earn them. Like, we were meant to be heirs of a kingdom we have not yet seen because we were born sons and daughters of a King we will see.
My dad has set an example of the peace, grace and love my brother and I can have in The Father. For years I lived as though God was a spiritual entity, detached from me. But before I met my parents, before I felt their love, He was the first. He fathered me first. He loved me first. And the story of my life is His gracious pursuit of it. He is dad. We just do not believe it as well as we should.
We struggle to trust His words or promises because we do not think of Him as dad. Only to find, He is the Father we have spent our lives searching for. His approval, His opinions, His complements, His hopes for our lives, His infinite joy, His incomparable love, His unlimited grace; His fatherhood, that is what we are drawing towards. And He is the only one designed to fill that role flawlessly.
Medically infants cry to receive oxygen for their organs to start working, but I am convinced the real reason they cry is because they realized they were detached from dad. And they got scared because they were not sure they would ever see Him again. He knew we needed Him, so He gave us someone like Him to hold onto in the meanwhile.
Whether that person was your actual father, or whether someone else had to double up as your father, the good news is that your real dad is The Father and you can live with the hope that you will see Him again.
Thanks dad, for showing us the face of The Father.
Thanks Dad, for showing us your face through our father.
