“I love you son”
A short sentence that you can say in less than a second, but it can change a persons day, life and destiny. Have you received these words? Or do you need to say them?
I personally never heard them from my biological father: in fact, the last time I spoke to him he said:
“I never wanted a son and I still don’t. Please don’t contact me again Adam”
That was the last time I talked to my dad – I honoured his wish: As far as I know he is now dead…
I had met him for the first time a year or so before this at the age of 20 (or so)…
At the pub he looked strangely familiar, even though I had never met him. We had quite a lot in common: he was a chronic alcoholic, workaholic and womaniser – just like me.
I subconsciously thought that meeting my him would change at least something for me. Maybe even everything! Maybe my life would change for the better, maybe I would feel like I belonged. Maybe it would ‘just make sense’?
Nope, there was nothing: just another night of getting drunk. No answers, no change.
This guy was living inside his business premises, banned form holding a licence forever and drunk most of the time – just like me.
A short while later, I would find myself even worse off than normal: a hopeless drunk, sleeping in between gearboxes on a shelf in my workshop, constantly breaking the law and in trouble with the police.
I never realised at the time that I was repeating my fathers’ mistakes, seemingly doomed to the same fate.
Around a year later, hundreds of kilometres from civilisation, I found myself on a cliff I intended to jump off. There was no point continuing, it was all too hard and I had experienced all the ‘fun’, ‘success’ and ‘fulfilment’ I could hope for.
But, here, as I read the Bible, I was confronted with amazing Truth:
1) God actually existed(!)
2) This God knew I would hate Him, reject Him & defame Him
3) God sent His Son (Jesus) to die a gruesome death to purchase my freedom despite my hatred & rebellion.
I was suddenly awakened to (and connected with) the love of *the Father*. Genuine love. Selfless. Untainted. Unconditional. Limitless. Uncontainable.
Now *this* was powerful…REAL POWER.
It made high speed chases, drugs, alcohol, sex, money – all of it – seem weak, powerless & useless.
This was a Father who *knew* I would hate Him, ignore Him, run from Him, reject Him, rebel against Him, yet He loved me anyway. So much He would send His Son to be punished and die for *my* mistakes! Hard to believe, yet strangely harder to deny.
The polar opposite of my biological father – this Father genuinely loved me despite me deserving the opposite.
It was an incredibly powerful and moving reality: I no longer needed (or wanted) to die, I was no longer a slave to impulses or sin and now wanted to worship this God who I had denied and/or hated my whole life.
Despite believing He didn’t exist, He actually paid for *all* my mistakes. He loved Me without reason, without cause, without limit!
This is true for you too…
No matter your background, what you have done or your beliefs: your life & soul can be transformed for eternity. You can experience His love & transforming power.
The reality is this: you have lived life opposing and ignoring the God who gave you life. You are heading for judgment which will leave you separated from Him forever.
He will never force anyone, but desires that none would perish.
He sent Jesus to pay *your* fine, the penalty of *your* sin.
No one has to go to hell for their sin.
That includes you…
What He paid on that fateful day was far more than we can imagine or duplicate, but we can experience it which is why the Bible says:
May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Ephesians 3:19 (NLT)
And we can live from it. As. His. *sons*:
And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.”7 Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir.
Galatians 4:6-7 (NLT)
I can testify that, no mater where you have come from, the love of *the Father* can transform you & enable you to be a father. A good one. And it’s so much more important than your job or work or hobby or sport or religion or anything else…
Loved by my father? Nope!
Loved by *The Father*? YES!!!
Father to the fatherless, defender of widows. This is our God.
#thankYouJesus #Fatherhood