Will You Be My Father?
March 1, 2023
Dear Friends,
On one of my trips to Romania, I was invited to go speak to the kids in an orphanage. These were mostly boys up through eighteen years of age. I was sharing the story of Jesus and the life we can have with Him and what it meant to be a child of God and see him as father. When I finished I took some time to talk with them and listen to their stories. Some of the stories I heard broke my heart. Many of them were dropped off at the orphanage by their parents whom they never saw again. Others were dropped off and their mom or dad said, “We’ll be back to see you soon.” But they never came back. One little guy said his mom dropped him off three years earlier and he was still waiting for her to come back. To look in their eyes and see the hurt and pain was tough and I vacillated between anger at what had been done to them and wanting to pick them up, hug them, and bring them home with me.
I remember clearly one little guy about 6-7 years old who walked up to me and looking up at me with these eyes full of hope said, “Will you be my father?” I almost lost it. I wanted to pick him up and take him out of there but obviously, I couldn’t. It was one of those experiences you never forget.
When I think of this I’m reminded of what a blessing it was for me to grow up in a home with a great father. We hunted and fished together, played catch, went to baseball games, and did what I thought were all the normal things fathers and sons did. When my father was taken from us I was an eighteen-year-old kid. Then I begin to look and see that a lot of other kids didn’t have a good father or in many cases, the father was not even in the home.
So where am I going with all of this? We know from Scripture that God is our Father. But what does that really mean? Because I grew up with a good father I had some idea of what that might look like. But trying to comprehend what it means to have God as Father was still difficult.
Although I shared this piece with you recently I felt it needed repeating when trying to understand what it was like to connect as a child with God as a Father.
PRAY FOR MY TRIP TO COVENANT COMMUNITY CHURCH IN EAGLE RIVER, ALASKA FOR A CONFERENCE ON APRIL 20-22. THIS WILL BE MY SECOND TRIP AND I WILL AGAIN JOIN MY DEAR FRIEND JUDITH MACNUTT.
Let yourself be loved by God
“I am your God, you are my child. How can you ever doubt that I will embrace you again, hold you against my breast, kiss you, and let my hands run through your hair? I am a God of mercy and compassion, of tenderness and care. I so much want you to be close to me. I know all your thoughts. I hear all your words. I see all of your actions. And I love you. Do not judge yourself. Do not condemn yourself. Do not reject yourself. Let my love touch the most hidden corners of your heart and reveal to you your beauty, a beauty that you have lost sight of. Come, let me wipe away your tears, and let my mouth come close to your ear and say to you, ‘I love you, I love you, I love you.'” Fr. Henri Nouwen
God wants to hang out with you. In order for a deep friendship to develop, there are times when we must spend time together doing absolutely nothing but being together.
This book will help you understand that, but only if you apply it will it help you live it.
WHY NOT WASTE TIME WITH GOD
It’s About Relationship!
WHY NOT WASTE TIME WITH GOD: MOVING BEYOND A SUPERFICIAL RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD TO LIVE IN INTIMACY WITH HIM
“This book frames spiritual growth with God’s heart, given in his Son and validated by His Spirit. This book demolishes our excuses and defenses against divine intimacy. This book is for those willing to have a fresh self-encounter and a fresh God-encounter,” Dr. Don Williams
God wants to hang out with you. We so often feel as if we must be doing something even when we are with God that it’s difficult for us to grasp that He wants to be our friend. In order for deep friendship to develop there are times when we must spend time together doing absolutely nothing but being together.
This book will help you understand that, but only if you apply it will it help you live it. Everything in this world fights against time alone with God. Everything in God longs for time alone with us. Why would you possibly choose to be influenced by the former?
You can order directly from our store at THIS LINK – Why Not Waste Time With God or call 661-833-2920.
Thank you for your prayers and support for Wholeness Ministries. You are vital in our continuing work.
God bless,
Mike