Tag: Father’s Love

Posted on

Loving Parents Are a Gift

This morning I was thinking about Mary and Joseph’s parents. Nothing is written in Scripture about them except that Joseph’s father was named Jacob (Matthew 1). But there are some things that we can assume about them and their character because of what we see in their children.

Mary’s parents must have been godly people; teaching their children the Scriptures and the prophesies of the coming of the Messiah. They also must have given their children good moral guidelines for their lives. Mary knew of the stories of a Messiah that would come because she wasn’t completely confused when the angel appeared to her. She also knew Jewish law said that a woman who had sexual relations outside of marriage should be stoned and so when she found herself with child she went to see her cousin Elizabeth for three months.

When Mary returned home she was “found” with child. What would her parents do? Her “condition” brought the entire family under criticism. Would they turn their daughter over to the proper authorities for judgment or would they love and protect her in spite of her circumstances?

Let’s look at Joseph’s family for a minute. Mary is engaged to Joseph when she is “found” to be with child. I can imagine Joseph’s father coming to him and saying “Son, you’ve disgraced the entire family. You’ve ruined the family business – no one will come to us for carpentry any longer. How could you have done such a thing?”

Joseph knows he isn’t the father of Mary’s baby. Who is? God tells Joseph it will be ok. She, Mary, is pregnant by divine means and the child she is carrying is the Messiah! WOW!!! He, too, has to have knowledge of the Scriptures for this to be a concept that he can embrace.

Both Mary and Joseph’s parents had to be a support for them because the rest of the community surely was criticizing and ridiculing at every turn. As parents, they knew they had raised their children correctly, raised them in the Scriptures and to love God! They must have prayed with them and for them since they were tiny and now it was time to show the unconditional love and support that their children needed.

What an example to us as parents today! We’ve raised our kids to know right from wrong; to know what honors and dishonors God. We, as parents, must learn from our heavenly Father. He loves us when we are unlovely; He forgives us and restores us when we fail; He is always seeking to have relationship with us even when we don’t want His advice or to be influenced by His knowledge. And He never loses faith in us, He never writes us off. Father God instructs us, He corrects us but most importantly He always loves us!

“God our Father loves us. He is kind and has given us eternal comfort and a wonderful hope. We pray that our Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father 17 will encourage you and help you always to do and say the right thing.” II Thessalonians 2:16-17 CEV

May we be parents who always encourage and help and love as the Father has loved us!

Posted on

A Father’s Heart

A couple of days ago I asked you to imagine what it might have been like for Jesus when they discussed the plan of restoring relationship with those of us on earth. He had to lay aside everything glorious and heavenly and become common. Now consider this.

Those of us parents who have had children join the military or enter other dangerous occupations know the heart ache, the apprehension and even the fear of having our children go off into the unknown, into hostile and harmful circumstances.

What if we were Father God? Our Son has been with us every moment from eternity past. We have created universes together, have intervened in the lives of our creation in a powerful way. Never a cross word spoken, never a rebellious thought or action – our Son is our dearest friend, He’s a part of all we do and have ever done.

He’s leaving now – headed to earth. “unto us a Son is given” Isaiah 9:6

He will be loved by some, treated with ambivalence by most and hated by others and they will plot to kill Him. Although we know all this, we still choose to let Him go and even more than that, we choose to let Him die so that He can provide restoration for all those who are incapable of providing it for themselves.

“When anyone is in Christ, it is a whole new world. The old things are gone; suddenly, everything is new! 18 All this is from God. Through Christ, God made peace between himself and us. And God gave us the work of bringing people into peace with him. 19 I mean that God was in Christ, making peace between the world and himself. In Christ, God did not hold people guilty for their sins. And he gave us this message of peace to tell people.” II Corinthians 5:17

And all of this was not because of our great value or importance but because of His great love.

“Christ died for us when we were unable to help ourselves. We were living against God, but at just the right time Christ died for us. 7 Very few people will die to save the life of someone else, even if it is for a good person. Someone might be willing to die for an especially good person.But Christ died for us while we were still sinners, and by this God showed how much he loves us.9 We have been made right with God by the blood sacrifice of Christ. So through Christ we will surely be saved from God’s anger.” Romans 5:6-9

“Unto to us a Son is given”! Would you be willing to give your son? Aren’t you glad He did!!

Posted on

A Loving Father

I am thankful for the example that my Dad lived before me and also for the man of character that I married. It’s important that we honor the men in our lives who live lives of integrity, compassion and wisdom. They are to be appreciated and valued.

A father’s love – tender-hearted, kind, forgiving, filled with compassion!

My father was strict but I knew he always loved me – he insisted I work hard, be respectful, do my best in everything. We worked hard but we played hard – enjoying fishing and hunting but there was never enough time to spend with him. My heavenly Father is the one who gave my earthly father those characteristics.

We don’t always see what our father, heavenly or earthly, is doing while we are in the midst of a situation. However, when we know our father, we know his motives and intentions are based on his love for us and we can trust him. They mold our character and are our examples of strength.

Even when we take off and manage to get ourselves in troublesome situations he is there. He watches and waits, He doesn’t come to “drag” us back but when we return He is overjoyed.

I guess the best gift we could give either our earthly or our heavenly Father is to come home. Ask for His forgiveness and be reconciled in our relationship.

“I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father.

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.” Luke 15:18-24 NIV

If your earthy father is still living remind him how special you feel he is and thank him for loving you. Also take time to thank your heavenly Father for His unconditional love, his unwavering support and for never giving up on you.

Posted on

I Love Your Hot Tub

This morning’s blog isn’t based on deep spiritual truth. It’s the words of my four year-old grandson.

“I love your hot tub, it’s nice and warm.”

He just said this to me and then flashed a big smile. Yes, he’s up! There is no quiet time for me…but that’s perfectly ok. I slept in a bit and woke to the smell of my coffee; it was on the automatic timer. I got up, fed Glory and poured my self a cup to find that just as I sat down Sam was also awake.

“Good morning Besta, is it time for breakfast?”

“No, not quite yet. We need to be quiet a little while longer so everyone else can sleep.”

He crawled up on the couch next to me and I got him a blanket and he’s laying down waiting patiently. Every few minutes he has something else to say. Yesterday, he and I were in the hot tub together. We played quite a while – not sure who had more fun, him or me.

Last night after we said bedtime prayers, Sam looked at me and said “This has been the best day!”

What would happen if we had that same attitude and ended our day by telling the Father “this has been the best day”? I think we would make Him smile and I can almost feel the kiss He would put on our cheeks as He leans forward to tuck us in.

“The Father has loved us so much! This shows how much he loved us: We are called children of God. And we really are his children. But the people in the world don’t un-derstand that we are God’s children, because they have not known him.” I John 3:1 ERV

How sweet it is to have a living example of a trusting, loving child sitting on my couch with me this morning. I hope you start your day with the realization that the Father loves you – dearly loves you!

He’s waiting to play with you in the hot tub!

Posted on

Unconditional Love

We’re celebrating Mom’s this weekend. The love they have for their children, the sacrifices they make and the encouragement they give. So many of the things they do each day go unnoticed, unappreciated or are just taken for granted. They nurture, comfort, encourage, discipline, instruct, nurse, counsel – and that’s just within the first few hours of each day.

If mothers can love like that day in and day out can you even begin to imagine how much God loves you? Really, really loves you!

Stop to consider how wonderful heaven is – it’s perfect in every way. Its beauty is beyond compare – there is no pain or sorrow; no sin or corruption; no fear or distress of any kind and yet God chose to have His son, His only begotten Son, leave heaven and come to earth.

For what? Why?

For you and I! To die for us so that we could have everlasting life and a place in heaven as one of God’s children – amazing, simply amazing! The Apostle Paul records a prayer that he prayed for the Christians of his day and it’s one that continues today.

“So I bow in prayer before the Father. 15 Every family in heaven and on earth gets its true name from him. 16 I ask the Father with his great glory to give you the power to be strong in your spirits. He will give you that strength through his Spirit. 17 I pray that Christ will live in your hearts because of your faith. I pray that your life will be strong in love and be built on love. 18 And I pray that you and all God’s holy people will have the power to understand the greatness of Christ’s love—how wide, how long, how high, and how deep that love is. 19 Christ’s love is greater than anyone can ever know, but I pray that you will be able to know that love. Then you can be filled with everything God has for you.” Ephesians 3:14-19

Knowing the love of God – how wide it is, how long, how high and how deep. It’s not something that can be understood or fathomed with our head. It can only be experienced and known with the heart.

I hope that as you recall the loving things that your mother has done in your life, you will also take time to meditate on God’s great love; His love for you personally – it will greatly improve your outlook.

Posted on

Thankful for an Open Door

This morning I was reading in Hebrews, one of my favorite books, and I reread those verses that I share with you so often.

“ Jesus understands every weakness of ours, because he was tempted in every way that we are. But he did not sin! 16 So whenever we are in need, we should come bravely before the throne of our merciful God. There we will be treated with undeserved kindness, and we will find help.” Hebrews 4:15-16 CEV

Come bravely, or boldly, before the throne!

In days of old, the only way a subject was allowed to come before the throne of the king was by invitation or summons. Even their own families were taught not to enter without first being granted access.

As I read these verses, I was impacted again with the absolute freedom that we have been given to come to the Father’s throne without fear. Confidently we come, knowing that we will find help and be treated with kindness.  Amazing!

I did a search to find an image of a palace with an open door to use as today’s illustration. Do you know how hard that is to find? The picture I used isn’t a palace, it’s a cathedral. Even today, palaces just don’t have open doors. They are secure areas, special clearance is needed and very few actually receive an audience with the king or ruler.

We have open access to the King of kings and Lord of lords.

And again, it’s not just access to Him; we have favor with Him, He holds us in His heart and is always willing to provide us with help.

“When you pray, don’t talk on and on as people do who don’t know God. They think God likes to hear long prayers. 8 Don’t be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask.

9 You should pray like this:  Our Father in heaven, help us to honor your name…” Matthew 6:7-9 CEV

These are the words that Jesus spoke when he was teaching his disciples to pray. He wanted them to understand that when they talked to God, prayed, they weren’t talking to someone they didn’t now. They were talking to their Father, a loving, tender-hearted, kind and compassionate Father; their Father who knew what they need before they came and had already planned to help.

My heart is overflowing with gratitude and love because of my Father’s kindness and grace. This morning I sat here in my chair, coffee in hand and I began to tell Him how much I love Him. I started listing all the reasons I have for loving Him and then I stopped abruptly. I wasn’t through with my list of His wonderful blessings…I was completely overwhelmed by His unconditional love.

Sometimes I see myself, as a little child, running through the throne room doors, straight up to the Father’s throne. When I get there I throw my arms around his neck, give Him a big kiss, tell Him how much I love Him, climb down from His lap and go on about my day. I know He likes that!

Jesus showed us that side of the Father when he took time to interact with the little children.

“ Then the people brought their little children to Jesus so that he could lay his hands on them to bless them and pray for them. When the followers saw this, they told the people to stop bringing their children to him. 14 But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them, because God’s kingdom belongs to people who are like these children.” 15 After Jesus blessed the children, he left there.” Matthew 19:13-15 CEV

This is an example for us. The Father wants us to come as little children. Children filled with innocence, confidence and total abandon, trusting completely in Him. I’m here to give testimony,  the Father’s throne room door is always open to His kids.

Come on in! He’s waiting just for us with open arms!

Privacy Policy Proudly powered by WordPress