It was my pop's birthday on Monday, so I thought I'd put down some thoughts about dads...
Few words in the English language will conjure more emotions, thoughts, perceptions than the word “Father” or “dad” or “daddy”
As you just read those words your mind immediately jumped to a picture-
Something comes immediately and powerfully comes to mind when I say the word “Father” perhaps when I say the word “daddy” a different variation comes to mind, but the powerful picture remains.
What comes to mind?
Do your thoughts first turn to the media?
To what our culture has made fathers into-
Maybe Danny on Full House or Homer Simpson, or Peter Griffen?
Or do you think of your own dad-
Good or bad-
I mean one might be thinking of the good times that dad brings, the other thinks of hurt and heartache.
Some might be thinking, which one? You have a step dad or an adopted dad or no father figure at all…
Few other words have such power.
I tell you what I think-
I think of my dad, Carl. He’s a pastor
He can fix anything
His work bench is filled with all sorts of odd and ends and gadgets that used to fascinate me as a kid, and still do today.
He loves to buy stuff off Ebay or craigslist that’s broken and fix it- which makes for great Christmas gifts…
He’s a mechanic, I can think of at LEAST 50 cars that my dad has bought and sold in the last 20 years.
He’s quirky, he’s kind, he’s gentle, he’s my dad-
He went from man to immortal in my mind on a vacation we took back in ’86…
We were in Glacier National Park, and if you’ve ever been to a National Park, you know that the hope, prayer, and desire of every bloomin’ person in the park is to see wild animals. The wilder the better. A Elk is good, a bison better, a moose great, a bear… legendary. We, obviously, wanted to see a bear. Its kind of a game as you weave in and out of mountain passes to spot wildlife. Your eyes are always peeled for things that can kill you so you can get out and get close to it and take a picture… genius.
Well, as soon as someone spots something that moves and appears to be large the whole world seemingly comes to a stand-still as people turn the already small roads into parking lots so they can get their own crappy picture of some sort of hoofed or clawed animal that’s more than likely 200 yards away. Trust me, after working in Yellowstone for a summer, do yourself a favor and buy a postcard instead…
ANYWAY, we had our hearts set on seeing a bear so when we came upon a BIG traffic jam we got really excited. Everyone was piled up on one end of a horseshoe-shaped scenic overlook. We assumed the bear was in the middle, so being smart and savvy outdoors people, we decided to go to the opposite end of where all the people were congregating and get niiiice and close to what we hoped was a merciless salmon killer. My mom, was unenthused, so she stayed in the big brown van with an orange stripe and no air conditioning that we called home for the 2 week trek out west.
So it was me and my dad and my 3 siblings out to get the world’s best picture. We come around this bend and we stop in our tracks. Half disappointed we find ourselves 20 feet or so away from a big ole mama moose. It was just standing in the path not too concerned with the growing crowd in front of her. Unfortunately for us, we were behind her. Now here is where the actual details get a little fuzzy. I was like 7 years old so I can’t say these are the exact events that transpired that sunny summer’s day in Montana, but this is the way I tell the story…We were admiring the rear quarters of the moose when she turned around and started slowly walking toward us. It was at that point we heard a rustling in the bushes to our right. We all look as a little baby moose emerges from the brush. Now I’m no Jack Hannah, but it is NEVER good to come between a mommy and her baby… By the time we realized what was going on, it seems the mom figured it out too… so she started to grunt and hoof at the ground. In one foul swoop she lunges toward us charging us as ramming speed. It was in this moment that my father channeled his inner Jackie Chan. He was in the middle of the pack until he jumped through us facing the moose one-on-one knees bent eyes wide open, arms fully stretched as he yelled, ‘RUN KIDS!”
We booked it as fast as we could. We bolted to the van got in as my mom yelled. “LOCK THE DOORS!” … like the moose could get in or something… we all plaster our faces to the windows to see my dad sprint out of the woods and into the safety of the van. The moose did not follow.
Yep, my dad is a superhero. He saved us from the evil charge of a ticked off mama moose. That’s love. Of course it is a funny story and its one of my favorite to tell- you can be sure I embellish a little… But the fact is, my dad didn’t think about it- he threw himself in front of us kids… Moose are indeed big, heavy, violent creatures- given the right circumstances, he could have died… but he was willing to do that for us. That’s a pretty cool realization, and that’s a really neat picture of love: throwing yourself in front of a moose.
But, that’s my dad, and it’s easy for me to take the good things about my father and plug them into how I picture my father in Heaven.
My dad here on earth provides- my father in heaven provides-
My dad on earth is loving, my father in heaven is loving…
Many of us have a wonderful model of how the Lord intended the family- and can picture God the father every time they look into the eyes of their dad on earth-
But, before I go too far, I know there are tons of people out there saying hey man, you got it good- my dad sucks. He’s an alcoholic, or he’s mentally or physically abusive, my dad left before I was born…
For every dad that’s there there’s a dad who’s not.
And that saddens me, it truly does-
If you want to read a REALLY REALLY good book on this very topic, read, “To Own A Dragon” by Donald Miller. OUTSTANDING book!
Anyway, the AMAZING thing is this- Regardless of your fathers here on earth. Regardless of what comes to mind initially when you hear the word “Father” despite any pain or heartache your dad has caused-
We have a Father-God in Heaven who loves us unconditionally through Jesus.
Phil. 4:19- And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus
Psalm 145:15-16
The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time
You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing
Just as my dad was willing to give up his life for us kids-
God became man in the person of Christ Jesus and died on the cross for you and for me.
He didn’t turn and yell RUN KIDS-
But rather he opens his arms and says COME to me all you who are weak and heavy burdened and I will give you rest!
He says call upon me in the day of trouble- I will deliver you!
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!
We went from enemies of God because of sin. To His dearly loved children through Christ. Thanks be to God!
He daily provides for us by giving us food in our stomachs and clothes on our backs- we have LIFE thru him-
He created us!!! And not like some sort of robot mass producing the same product over and over, but rather he made us all unique and different
The Psalmist says he Knit us together in our mothers wombs.
He knows us by name
He knows the number of hairs on our heads-
Just as he provides for the birds of the air- do you ever see a robin look nervous cuz he can’t find a worm?
Of course not- just as he provides for the birds, he provides for us!
No matter how great or how bad our dads on earth are- know that our daddy in heaven- Abba, father, our creator- He is good, he is faithful, he is pure, and we are his dearly loved kids sitting safely in his arms.
Don’t let the darkness of this world cloud your vision of your father in heaven.
Being a German, I'm not one to say "I love you" to my 'rents... but they know I do... regardless of how I do it, I know that it's really let them know that I do indeed love them so much-
Because our father in heaven let us know that he loves us by sending by save us from sin-
By giving us a hope and a future-
Not just in this world, but in the world to come
Because of the love that our father has showed us thru Christ Jesus
We have his grace and his peace that will dwell in us forever-
In his arms we rest and in his name we live.
Its later... so, good night, world!
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