For as long as I’ve been a follower of Christ, I have always preferred to address God as “Father.” There are many reasons for that. Jesus often referred to God as Father and taught us to pray beginning with the word “Father” to address Him. My dad was a good father. Though he wasn’t prefect, he was always there for me and would do all within his power for me.
I never really understood the full ramifications of referring to God as Father until He blessed me with becoming a dad for the first time. I always knew that God the Father loved me, it’s when I had a daughter of my own that I became aware of how much that love meant.
I would watch my daughter playing in the backyard, and suddenly become overwhelmed with how much I loved this little life that had come into my life. I would want to grab that little girl in my arms and hold her close to me.
One of my fondest moments as a dad was when my children (daughter, son, daughter) would fall asleep while lying on my chest. To see those sweet children so relaxed and at ease in my arms reminded me how much I could rely on and rest in my Father’s arms.
I also learned what it is to be a child of God when I had a child of my own. When I would watch my daughter play and be overwhelmed with love so that I would want to hug her, I’d call out to her. Sometimes, she’d come over and could hug her, kiss her and tell her I loved her. But there would be other times when she’d be too busy, wrapped up in her playing, to interrupt her day and come talk with her dad. Sure, I could have demanded she come immediately, but when you call someone over simply to tell them how much you love them, it seems silly to demand that they come over against their will to do so. I think of all the times God has called out to me, but I was too busy to stop and see what He wanted. God calls to us, but He doesn’t demand we immediately stop and respond. He wishes we would, He wants us to, but He has never insisted on anything. It is always to my advantage to heed His call, though.
I remember one time I had done something truly foolish. What I had done had caused harm to so many people, including myself, that I felt God couldn’t love me anymore. It was then that He reminded me of the times one of my children had done something harmful to others and themselves. He asked me how I responded to that. It was then that I felt my children needed to know more than ever that their dad, though disappointed, still loved them. I would try to show them my love even more during those times. God opened my eyes to realize that even during this time, God’s love was still with me. Just as I would never think about disinheriting one of my children for some stupid thing they may have done, so God would never abandon me as His child.
God has reminded me of His great love for me and those who are His by allowing me to become a father. In so doing, He has also shown me how to become a better child of His. I can think of nothing better than being a dad.
The only exception is in being a child of the Father.