The Heart of My Daddy Since the Beginning of Time!
Week 24, Monday
Diane Nix
When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the Lord God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the Lord God among the trees. Then the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” Genesis 3:8-9 (nlt)
The observance of Father’s Day came from the mind of one woman sitting in a church service in the year 1909. She had listened to a sermon for Mother’s Day and wanted to honor her father for how he had raised her. Her mother had died in childbirth. Her dad had raised the infant and his five other children alone. Sixty-six years passed before Father’s Day was signed into law as an official holiday by President Nixon in 1972. The holiday wasn’t created so that card companies could sell millions of cards, but rather to honor the hearts of all good fathers, who contributed as much as mothers in their own ways.
In the ancient world of the Hebrews and Greeks, the father was the head of the home. He pronounced blessings on his children, imparted the heritage of the generations who had gone before, and most importantly the knowledge of the heavenly Father. When a child cried out for his “Abba” it was a term of endearment and respect. In the modern world we are reminded that the trend of having the father present in the home is far from the norm. With the absence of the earthly father’s instruction, discipline, and blessing is it any wonder that we struggle to know the heart of our heavenly Father?
Our heavenly Father’s heart is unconditional love. He doesn’t want to be separated from us. He made a way through the greatest sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ (see John 3:16). He loves us with such deep conviction that He has pursued us since Creation. He has never stopped that pursuit. His heart is one of great patience (see 2 Peter 3:9). Christianity is the only religion in which our Abba Daddy God pursues a relationship with us. His heart is love—unconditional, never failing, inexhaustible love. Get to know Him as your Abba. He created you for intimacy with Himself. He provided a way through His Son for this intimacy and the written Word to discover His heart for you.
As you honor your earthly father, above all, may you know the heart of your Abba Daddy God! He loves you, no matter what you have done or not done.
Dear God, Help me to honor my earthly father. Help me to know You as my Abba Daddy God! Amen.
