OUR HEAVENLY FATHER
See how much our Heavenly Father loves us, for he allows us to be called his children, and that is what we really are! 1 John 3:1 NLT
Shortly after becoming a pastor and moving to Minnesota to begin a new church, I had an experience I’d never had before. We had started this new church and many new people were beginning to attend our services. I had a husband and wife contact me, asking to come for some help. The wife, it turns out, had grown up in a very broken home, had been terribly hurt by her father, and was still trying to recover from the damage he had caused. During our conversation she shared in tears, “I know I am supposed to pray to God and see God as my father, but that concept is so painful to me that I cannot conceive of doing it, or of grasping God being my father.” She would only refer to God as The Shepherd.
I was heartbroken for her by the story she shared. This was actually my first time hearing anyone express that they felt they could not refer to God as Father, but over the last 40 years I have heard from many who’ve felt similarly conflicted by it.
So many people have a damaged relationship with their fathers. Many have been deserted, abandoned, ignored, and deeply hurt by their father. Others had a father who was harsh and angry at them all the time, impossible to please, or was emotionally distant and indifferent to their child. Many feel genuinely unloved and unwanted by their father.
This is the heart breaking, tragic reality of our broken, decimated world.
It is absolutely essential for your healing, for your spiritual progress, for your emotional and mental well-being, to understand and grasp that God is your Heavenly Father, and all the wonderful things that actually means.
Your Heavenly Father is never out to hurt you but to help you. Your Heavenly Father will never abandon you or forsake you. Your Heavenly Father is never indifferent to you or your sufferings. He will never ignore you or shut you out. Your Heavenly Father loves you with an everlasting, never fading, unfailing, passionate, faithful, committed love. Your Heavenly Father does not love you because you’re perfect, or good enough, or talented enough, or beautiful enough. He loves you because you are absolutely precious to Him, so much so that He sent his Son to die for all your imperfections, all of your flaws and sins. Your Heavenly Father wanted you so much as his child that he paid the ultimate price to adopt you into his family. Your Heavenly Father loves you because God is love, not because you are lovable enough, or worthy enough. He has given you the right to come into his presence anytime, any place, any way you are, and ask for his help, seek his advice, ask for anything you need, or share and pour out every sorrow, heartache, frustration, hurt, and trouble that’s on your mind. Your Heavenly Father cares about you so deeply that he collects every tear from your eyes in his bottle of remembrance, he records every sorrow you experience in his book. Your Heavenly Father always accepts you. He will never reject you. He will never betray you or stab you in the back. Your Heavenly Father is overflowing with compassion for you, his precious child, as you struggle, grow weary, falter, make mistakes, or simply come apart under the great weights and stresses of life. He never suffers from “compassion fatigue.” Your Heavenly Father forgives all of your sins. There is not one that is left unforgiven, unpaid for, or held over your head by your Heavenly Father. Your Heavenly Father is not harsh and scary. He is gentle, tender, understanding, compassionate, merciful, kind, and always willing to listen. Your Heavenly Father is infinitely strong, infinitely wise, infinitely powerful, and perfect in all His ways. Your Heavenly Father does not make mistakes.
Knowing God as my Heavenly Father has changed my life and saved me. It will do the same for you.
This expresses God the Father’s heart towards you.
Isaiah 43:1-5 NLT
But now, O [Christian], the Lord who created you says: “Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters and great trouble, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown! When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I gave [my Son] as a ransom for your freedom; I gave [Jesus Christ] in your place. [He] was given in exchange for you. I traded [His] life for yours because you are precious to me. You are honored, and I love you. Do not be afraid, for I am with you.”
Romans 8:15 CEV
God’s Spirit doesn’t make us slaves who are afraid of him. Instead, we become his children and call him our Father.
Never forget—“His name shall be called Everlasting Father”!
Please, I urge you to listen to these two short message series. They will be transformative to your life and spiritual journey. I did them to help Christians just like you.
https://strongdisciple.com/
https://strongdisciple.com/
https://strongdisciple.com/
*The parenthesis around the words in Is.43:1-5 are to signify that I changed the original word of the text to “Christian”, and to “Jesus Christ” in keeping with the applicable meaning revealed in the New Testament Gospel.
Helping you become a Strong Disciple,
Because of Jesus,
Pastor Mark Darling
