Monday, June 21, 2021
The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. Psalm 28:7
A Father We Can Trust
Yesterday was Father’s Day and I spent a lot of the day thinking about all the fathers in my life. My own father has been gone for twenty-two years but I still miss him. There is so much of my life that he did not get to be a part of and that makes me so sad. He faced many challenges, such as addiction, but I never had to wonder how he felt about me. He often told me I was the “Apple of his eye,” and his actions never suggested anything different.
There are many different kinds of fathers out there but they all have one thing in common - they are human. Some fathers are so bogged down in sin and strongholds that they sacrifice their relationship with their children to the idols that control their lives. Sadly they don’t realize it until it is too late sometimes. Some have fathers that are abusive, physically, verbally, or both. Some fathers have good hearts and love their children but fail to meet their needs. Some have fathers that are their rock, their first call, their safe haven. ALL fathers, like the rest of us, have faults and weaknesses because of their humanity. If you have no father, or a broken relationship with your father, or if you are a father who is in need of a heavy dose of grace, we have a Heavenly Father that will love us, give us grace, and who we can trust. He fills all the voids in our lives. He fills in every gap and gaping hole left by others.
Our Heavenly Father that is the one and only answer for everything. Someone recently told me that they knew that there was only one answer for all the problems in their life. Before they could answer, I said, ”I know - it’s our Heavenly Father!!” That was not the answer he was going to give me. Our Heavenly Father is the answer for every hurt, every failure, every complicated mess, every no way-out situation we get ourselves into, and every failed attempt. He is our rock, our first call, and our safe haven forever. He will be our soft place to land that never lets us down. You will exhaust yourself searching for someone here on earth to be that person. Some may fill some of these voids but no one will fill all these roles consistently and faithfully forever. Even the greatest of fathers cannot do for our hearts what only our Heavenly Father can do. They definately enhance His work in our hearts. God still takes failures and turns them for His glory and our good. So, if you have a failed relationship with your earthly father, there can still be healing and good that comes from it.
If Father’s Day left you feeling sad and empty, run to the Father - the Heavenly Father who can fill the empty. He is trustworthy. He is a Father that will never let you down or leave your side. As the scripture says, He is our strength and shield and our hearts can trust Him. Trust in Him, give thanks for Him and praise Him today.
You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.
Isaiah 26:3
