Thank You For Being Such A Great Father!

Happy Father’s Day

♥ Thank You for allowing me to be Daddy’s Little Girl for just a little while longer! ♥

Simple words really…  “Thank you for being such a great Father!”  If they are so simple, then why did hearing those eight simple words take my breath away as it tore into and exposed the deep recesses of my bleeding heart?  How could the innocence and the purity of gratitude produce such intensity and fervor?

As we huddled together in prayer and reflection before setting out to love on the less fortunate, we generally tried to conclude each prayer with praise and gratitude for our own daily provision.  The beautiful and genuine words spoken from a full heart could have easily been overlooked had I not been still and present in the moment. 

Repeating the words that the tender heart spoke with passionate praises and gratitude to God were gentle whispers of “Thank you for being such a great father.”  As I absorbed and digested every consonant and vowel from these simple words flowing from a pure heart, I dropped to my knees into a puddle of tears that developed due to my convicted heart.  

As I fell to my knees in total awe and adoration while pondering this Great Love of the Father that had sheltered me the whole time as I sought refuge by clinging ever-so-tightly to, I wondered when, if ever, I actually conceived or even truly grasped the concept that God was my daddy, my protector, my redeemer; the father I had always craved for, much less thanked and appreciated for being such a great father.  Have I taken His Love for granted without truly realizing what all He’s done for me and what all it cost Him?  That actual awareness flooded my heart and dropped me to my knees!

If we dare to admit honestly, we often take God for granted and push away His blessings.  While that may be true, God nonetheless is always there for us.  He listens to our needless complaints and every whimper while capturing all our tears and holding them as precious in a bottle (Psalm 56:8).  He always walks alongside of us while holding our hand, reassuring us not to be afraid (Isaiah 41:10-13).  He promises to never leave us (Deuteronomy 31:8) and never will; and He gently caresses and strokes our faces while comforting us with affirmations and reassuring value of “I love you just the way you are.” 

So why would a tender heart so loved and acknowledged, one who is always hanging onto those strong and powerful legs ever-so-tightly, not realize that God is the perfect father to the fatherless (Psalm 68:5-6)?  Does this mean I took His role for granted through assumption, which we all do at times, or is it because I have always believed I needed to behave or perform a certain way in order to receive His love and, therefore, became too exhausted to just encounter this Great Love affair that is freely offered to anyone who asks and dares to receive?

These simplistic, yet powerful, words evoked such a posture from a girl who has suffered great loss like so many tender hearts today who mourn the loss of a father’s love without the realization of how loved she really is!  Coming from a girl who loves to sing praises to the Lord constantly because of His overflowing joy, I am giddy as I now skip along in life and travel with the Lord as He gently leads and romances my every fiber.  What a love affair!  I love to praise Him for all His wonderful gifts, but thanking him for being such a great father? 

Wow…  It hit me.  God is my daddy.  God’s Love is so amazing and fulfilling, I hadn’t realized my tight grip had become loosened and I was now enjoying the father/daughter waltz with God leading the orchestration and my joy could no longer be contained due to gratitude (Colossians 2:6-7).

As much as I care to admit, I almost feel as if this adoration for God, through vocalization or church attendance, becomes lip service almost at times and not from the heart that Matthew 15:8 talks about.  I mean, if we truly perceived His majesty and His power and His Shekinah glory, our attitudes and mindsets would be so different, so innocent and childlike, so full of awe that we would earnestly seek out that precious time to bow before Him in deep reverence and appreciate life and all its trials and tribulations with grace and dignity.  We would approach life without fear and love more and judge less!  How we take God’s sovereignty lightly and our inheritance for granted!  God owes us nothing; yet gave us His only son to suffer a horrendous death on the cross at Calvary so we could be reconciled to Him (1 John 4).  Now that’s love!!!

If that isn’t enough in and of itself to say thank you for being such a great father, I don’t know what is.  What father (or person) exists 24 hours a day with a belt full of power tools just waiting for us to call upon Him for help?  God loves to help us; if only we would allow Him the opportunity to have some room to fix all of our problems before we decide to intervene because we know it all (don’t we wish!) or we’re too impatient and take over by becoming that contractor or doctor who botches things up and causes more problems due to our own services rendered.

You see, He has to tap into the artery to pull out the hurt to enable the healing process to begin while occupying the spaces with new life and vitality that once were broken and filled with disease (pain)!  This was major heart surgery that could only be accomplished by the Great Physician with a drill bit six feet in length (well, I’m 5’10”, close enough ♥). 

We can’t give up on God and His timing, He slowly and magnificently brings healing during the transformation process, but only when we become fully surrendered and ready to receive.  How easy it is to sit back and bask in His amazing love and omnipresence, but never grasp how wide and deep His love truly is (Ephesians 3:17-19).  His love surpasses all knowledge and wisdom.

Being depleted of the Father’s love creates deep wounds that oftentimes develops into depression, addictions, isolation and, sadly, suicidal tendencies.  I became depressed as a teenager and my depression became severe enough that I attempted to take my own life by driving myself off of a cliff over 37 years ago, all due to the fact that I wanted to be loved and feel loved. You can read about that suicide attempt here.

I know you’re scared and how you want to be loved.  I also know how easy it is to numb that pain through drugs, alcohol, food, work and even isolation.  It hurts!  God wants in, He’s tugging on your heart right now saying, “Let me in, Beautiful Beloved.  Let’s waltz together!  I love you just the way you are.  You don’t need to do a thing except receive my love by believing.  My love is patient, my love is kind, my love does not easily anger and it keeps no record of your mistakes or perceived failures (1 Corinthians 13).  Get to know me!  Receive it; it is free!  I love you, child of mine!”  That’s the definition of a Good, Good Father!

Let’s embrace this Great Love of our Heavenly Father.  We’re not only safe and secure snuggled up next to our daddy, but we know He loves us just the way we are and there’s nothing we can do to change or lose that Love.  That comfort and reassurance should give us the confidence knowing we don’t have to conform to others’ leading, we don’t have to look a certain way, we’re allowed to voice our feelings and thoughts, and we are loved just the way we are!!!  Now, that’s love worth pursuing and it’s unconditional!

What are you waiting for; He is waiting for you with open arms and a six-foot-long drill bit!

Let’s allow these simple words, “Thank you for being such a great father,” to be on our lips and in our hearts as we pour out our praises and tap into His Great Love by letting Him take the lead in our dance as we waltz together!

Until next time…

Happy Father’s Day, Papa God; and to every Father!

 

 

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