Father's Day...

A little over 100 years ago in a town nicknamed "The Friendly City," a lady by the name of Mrs. Grace Golden Clayton organized a celebration that several decades later was written into law as a permanent national holiday.  In this country, every third Sunday in June is set aside to recognize our fathers, showing appreciation for all that they have done and all they mean to us.  Though created to be a joyous and sentimental occasion, many of us are filled with sadness and heartbreak instead.  For some, today marks the first Father's Day they will spend without their Father.  Unable to see him or pick up the phone and hear his voice on the other end only intensifies the grief of their tremendous loss.  For others, today is yet another painful reminder of the abandonment they suffered, leaving them wondering what it would have been like to even have a father at all.  There are others of us who have a father we can physically pick up the phone and call, but have nothing to say to the voice that answers on the other end.  For those of us who have been deeply wounded by our dads, the very sound of his voice represents pain. 

I remember standing in a Hallmark store with my mom one year when I was young and still living in a world full of secrets.  I stood staring at Father's Day cards trying to pick one out for my dad, an experience that proved quite difficult for me.  I read dozens of cards filled with beautiful sentiments, proclaiming a father as a hero, mentor and protector.  I searched for a card that simply said, "Happy Father's Day," but all I could find were cards describing a dad as someone who would always be there with love and support, thanking him for shaping the person I had become today.  Ironically, there were no cards thanking fathers for giving into their perverted desires and ripping out the childlike innocence night after night.  I couldn't find even one single card expressing appreciation for the fear that accompanies a drunken rage or the sting felt with vulgar and hateful words.  My dad had definitely helped shape the person I had become, but I couldn't find the right card that said thank you dad for abusing me...thank you dad for the immense guilt and shame...thank you dad for the abandonment...thank you dad for the overwhelming pain.

When God designed families, He entrusted fathers with a very critical responsibility.  There is no doubt about the fact that children need their fathers.   Every little boy should dream of being like his daddy one day, and every little girl should know the delight that comes with being daddy's little princess.  Children should feel safe and secure wrapped in the arms of their father.  Fathers are meant to instill wisdom and courage in their children, helping them develop into confident young adults with integrity and character.  The basic message....the influence of a father is extraordinary.  When I see a wonderful dad in action or hear of stories from others about how loving their fathers are, my heart is filled with joy.  Oh to know that your father loves you unconditionally and would take a bullet for you without hesitation. 

Thankfully, there are so many remarkable fathers out there who deserve every word written in the Hallmark cards I have read over the years.  However, the sad reality is we live in a country that has become known for being a world leader in fatherless families, a statistic many of us can identify with all to well.  I was overwhelmed as I read through all of the various statistics associated with children who grow up without a loving father, it is quite discouraging.  I, too, feel the void of not having a loving earthly father.  I have a dad, but his unwillingness to live beyond his world of sin and evil desires prevents us from having a relationship.  I once got into a conversation with a friend who never knew her parents.  She questioned if it was worse to grow up without ever knowing a parent, or to grow up with a parent who mistreats you.  The answer...they both stink...and both are outside the realm of God's intended plan. 

Whether you have grown up with an abusive father or an absent father, please know you are not doomed to a life of sadness and sorrow, nor are you destined to be part of the hundreds of statistics.  The void from not having a loving earthly father might be extensive and painful, but it can be filled and ultimately healed.  You and I may not have an earthly father who would take a bullet for us, but we have a father in Heaven who has already taken the nails for us.  He is a Father to the fatherless and takes us in when we are forsaken by our earthly fathers.   When we place our trust in Jesus Christ, He adopts us as His own and considers us as prized treasures.  His love for us is absolutely perfect and in His loving arms we are safe and secure.   On this Father's Day, we too can celebrate.  Happy Father's Day to the Almighty God and Creator of all things...my Heavenly Father who I am blessed to call daddy.