The Father
Since I have been given the privilege of being a dad, my perspective of God has broadened. I was raised to acknowledge His sovereignty, reverence His authority He holds for all things in power and justice, and maintain a holy fear for His presence. Though my actions may deter from this knowledge at times because of sin, it has always been easy for me to withhold this teaching. One attribute of God that was difficult for me to visualize was He was that of a father. That is, until I became dad.
It's just not logical for The Creator of the universe, who spoke creation into existence, to have time for one of His greatest creations to spend a moment in His lap talking, crying, or laughing. But, it makes perfect sense. The verb meaning of father is, to be the creator, founder or author of; originate. He is our creator. He is The Father. That not only means this role is generally, but also individually. No matter how society has viewed Him since the beginning of our existence, He is still our Father. I'm beginning to understand that title He bears more so now than ever before.
The first day of our beach vacation this year was incredible. The entire family was excited and the scenery of the ocean, white sand, along with the clear blue sky was that of perfection. Perhaps it was too perfect. Even with the substantial amount of sunscreen, Deven's all day fun in the sun exposure gave him the worst sunburn he has ever experienced. He was unable to sleep well and was in obvious pain the next day. I was on the balcony reading that morning when he came out with an extremely distressed look on his face. He was dropping cereal and milk and I sternly told him to watch what he was doing. Without a word spoken, he was leaning on the balcony rail looking out to the beach and I saw a tear run down the left side of his face. Needless to say, my heart was broken. I thought he was upset about my reaction to the cereal accident. When I got up to stand beside him and investigate further, I found out he was devastated that his day would be spent watching and not participating in activity at one of his favorite places due to his sunburnt condition.
Twenty four hours later, he comes out on the balcony with a much different demeanor. "I'm better, dad!" he said. Though he was still very tender and a little stiff, he was optimistic and enthusiastic. I told him we would give it a try and required him to wear a shirt. When we got into the ocean and he rode the first wave, he came up out of the water with the smile that only my Deven can give. I too smiled. He was unaware of the great joy I received from knowing he was without pain and enjoying such a simple moment.
The reality of "Heavenly Father" was more evident than ever. The instincts and emotions that come with this position must be genetics of our true Father. He cares. He cares so much about His children. He feels our hurts and our joy - no matter how significant or insignificant the situation may seem. Many, especially in the culture of today, have never received the love, protection, concern, compassion, instruction, and discipline of a father. Though my interpretation is simple, I believe this is one reason Jesus reminded us all in Matthew 23:9 that we have one Father, and He is not like any on this earth...
And do not call anyone on earth "father," for you have one Father, and He is in heaven.
If either of my sons call to me, I will answer. Would not the Heavenly Father answer those who call to Him? He longs for His children to recognize He is "Father." He will fulfill that role with perfection.
It's just not logical for The Creator of the universe, who spoke creation into existence, to have time for one of His greatest creations to spend a moment in His lap talking, crying, or laughing. But, it makes perfect sense. The verb meaning of father is, to be the creator, founder or author of; originate. He is our creator. He is The Father. That not only means this role is generally, but also individually. No matter how society has viewed Him since the beginning of our existence, He is still our Father. I'm beginning to understand that title He bears more so now than ever before.
The first day of our beach vacation this year was incredible. The entire family was excited and the scenery of the ocean, white sand, along with the clear blue sky was that of perfection. Perhaps it was too perfect. Even with the substantial amount of sunscreen, Deven's all day fun in the sun exposure gave him the worst sunburn he has ever experienced. He was unable to sleep well and was in obvious pain the next day. I was on the balcony reading that morning when he came out with an extremely distressed look on his face. He was dropping cereal and milk and I sternly told him to watch what he was doing. Without a word spoken, he was leaning on the balcony rail looking out to the beach and I saw a tear run down the left side of his face. Needless to say, my heart was broken. I thought he was upset about my reaction to the cereal accident. When I got up to stand beside him and investigate further, I found out he was devastated that his day would be spent watching and not participating in activity at one of his favorite places due to his sunburnt condition.
Twenty four hours later, he comes out on the balcony with a much different demeanor. "I'm better, dad!" he said. Though he was still very tender and a little stiff, he was optimistic and enthusiastic. I told him we would give it a try and required him to wear a shirt. When we got into the ocean and he rode the first wave, he came up out of the water with the smile that only my Deven can give. I too smiled. He was unaware of the great joy I received from knowing he was without pain and enjoying such a simple moment.
The reality of "Heavenly Father" was more evident than ever. The instincts and emotions that come with this position must be genetics of our true Father. He cares. He cares so much about His children. He feels our hurts and our joy - no matter how significant or insignificant the situation may seem. Many, especially in the culture of today, have never received the love, protection, concern, compassion, instruction, and discipline of a father. Though my interpretation is simple, I believe this is one reason Jesus reminded us all in Matthew 23:9 that we have one Father, and He is not like any on this earth...
And do not call anyone on earth "father," for you have one Father, and He is in heaven.
If either of my sons call to me, I will answer. Would not the Heavenly Father answer those who call to Him? He longs for His children to recognize He is "Father." He will fulfill that role with perfection.
Comments
I loved reading this. I miss those boys of yours. I pray you have a GREAT vacation. Give Duckie and boys hugs for me!