Our Father, who is in heaven
Almighty God, who made the heavens and the earth, is like a father to us.
Perhaps not like the father we knew as we were growing up, but like a father.
How extraordinary!
My Father
My own father was there in body, but often absent in spirit. He was a dedicated, family doctor, who wrote papers on epidemiology in his spare time. Unfortunately he never had any time or energy left for me.
My mother would warn me not to disturb him, if he was working in his study
and shoo me outside to play.
My image of him watching television, smoking, fills me with vague feelings
of loss and sadness even today.
Earthly Fathers
Some earthly fathers are strict disciplinarians, hard to approach – stern, cold, remote.
Our Heavenly Father is never like this.
He always makes time for us.
He always listens to us.
He always cares.
Some fathers are so soft that they are not careful to discipline their children. As they give way to them again, they teach their child to be more selfish. Actually, they are showing that they don’t love their children, because lack of discipline ruins a life.
If you refuse to discipline your children, it proves you don’t love them. If you love your children, you will be prompted to discipline them.
Proverbs 14 v 24
Discipline your children while there is hope. If you don’t, you will ruin their lives.
Proverbs 19 v 18
Sadly, there are some fathers who are abusive, corrupting the very nature of fatherly love. The evil one loves to destroy loving relationships and steal childhoods, if he can.
God is love.
He is never abusive, corrupt or corrupting.
He is holy, pure and incorruptible.
Abba Father
Saint Paul says the Spirit in us cries out, ‘Abba, father.’ In our church there is a beautiful, elderly, Armenian lady who calls her God, ‘Baba jim’, which translates from the Turkish as ‘Dear Daddy.’ There is nothing disrespectful in her prayers, just a lifetime of love of her heavenly Father.
Respect is important. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and Our God is truly awesome. He isn’t our buddy in the sky.
He is our respected, holy, awesome, heavenly Father, our Baba jim.