If you read my previous post, you know God answers prayers and when He does it’s spectacular. I hope the post didn’t come off as self centered or materialistic in any sense, for that was not my intentions. At the heart of it all, it wasn’t about the desk, it was about the amazing fact of how much God cares for us, that He listens to prayers, and provides what we need when we need it. Because that is the good, good Father that He is.
I hope it isn’t too late to add a post related to Father’s Day. As you might know, I forgot Father’s Day was here until the evening before. However, it was great to worship Him on such a day and to hear all in our church lifting their voices up to Him. People pray at the altar almost every week; some will get answers soon while others have to wait a couple of years to get answers. Yet, each prayer is answered in due time, no matter if that answer is a yes or a no. God knows the best time to give us the blessing we need, whether we realized we needed it or not. That’s one of the marvelous things about Him.
“And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”
Matthew 6:7-8
Again, it wasn’t about the actual desk itself (because the desk itself is just wood and nails), it was knowing God heard my prayers and showed me He was listening. On earth our flesh and blood fathers can audibly tell us they heard us, but so often we as believers wonder if God is listening to us because we can’t audible hear His reply to our request. Each week I put my parents in the prayer request I place in the offering plate because my parents still need salvation. I’ve been doing this for about three years and though I’ve seen some baby steps it’s hard sometimes not to wonder if my prayers are heard.
Don’t get me wrong, I have good parents. My dad has strong morals; he taught us well to stand on our own two feet. He taught us basic life skills that weren’t taught in school to ensure we were prepared for whatever may come. For example, one of these skills is observation. Several times growing up while we were all out shopping he reminded my mother and I to always be observant of your surroundings including who was around you. My dad is a worry-wart and he feared something would happen during one of the times he wasn’t there. While I’ve set aside the slight paranoia I had as a teenager, I’m grateful for the observation skills and everything else he has taught me.
While my earthly father has passed down his love for learning new things and keeping a level head when situations try to tilt our world off balance, my Heavenly Father has passed down His grace, love, wisdom, and strength. I’m blessed to have them both. I pray my earthly father comes to know our Heavenly Father through salvation soon.
I know not everyone has a loving father and my heart breaks for them. One of them is a girl I mentor who is only eleven. As far I know she doesn’t know her father and she doesn’t want to be around her mother because of the choices she’s made in her own life. It’s awful that she has to go through this because this bright, beautiful, energetic girl deserves better. Thankfully, she is saved, but there are still wounds there from her situation. I know God will heal those wounds with time, yet she still has much to face in these coming years (we all know how tough high school can be). Please, if you believe in the power of prayer, pray for her.
To the others who didn’t have a loving earthly father in your life, please know there is a Heavenly Father waiting with open arms for you to turn to Him with your needs. He’s willing to carry you through the thick and thin, He will protect you whatever may come, and He will guide you wherever you may go. He will never leave you. Although He will discipline you at times, it is only to help you grow into what He created you to be. You are His beautiful fruit tree. With some growth and some pruning, you can bear good fruit in His holy name. Turn your heart towards His and let Him adopt you into His family.
“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Romans 10:9
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.”
1 John 3:1
Not the Norm 