Those of us whose father has passed sometimes treat the Father’s Day celebration as more of a memorial day than a day of thankfulness for the sacrifices they made. Though our earthly father may be gone, we still have a watchful and caring Father in Heaven.
Have you ever really paid attention to the Lord’s Prayer as Jesus taught us? In Matthew 6:19, Jesus starts the prayer “Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name..” He doesn’t say pray to MY Father in heaven, He says to pray to OUR Father in Heaven! Jesus wanted us to know we can look to God as a Father as well as our Creator and Lord.
You might ask, “He is in Heaven, I’m down here, who will take care of me in my time of need?” In Matthew 7:11 we are told “If ye, then being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father in heaven give good things that ask him.” In Psalm 68:5 God is described as “A father of the fatherless, and a judge of the widows, is God in His holy habitation.”
God is there if you miss your father. He understands the hurt that empty chair may bring or that missing feeling when you look at a photograph. He knows loss; He lost a Son for a short time on a cross. He knows your pain. But if you lay that pain at the foot of that cross and give it to Jesus, the peace will come.
For those who are celebrating with their earthly father this year, praise the Lord for another year with them! Remember God places high regard on parents and even gives us a commandment with a blessing attached! Exodus 20:12 states “Honour they father and thy mother; that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.”
And here’s to the stepfathers who all too often love just as strongly and provide just as well as the missing parent, but never seem to get the credit they deserve, remember Jesus had a stepdad who loved Him also.
God Bless all the fathers this year as we honor them for helping mold us into who we are, and thank you God for those who have been taken home, their job done. Amen
