Every Little Girl's Dream...
To Have a Daddy Who Loves Me
For many children, the greeting of "Happy Father's Day,"
is not a signal for celebration,
but a bleak reminder of a missing relationship in their lives.
Father's Day can be difficult for
children and adults alike who have strained relationship with their dads,
who have never known their dads,
or who have lost their dads to death.
When I was a little girl, my father spent most of his waking
hours working at his Building Supply Company,
observing construction sites, or socializing with his colleagues
and associates.
Even though his place of business was only a few blocks from our home,
his heart was miles away in a place I could not find.
At the same time, I observed how
other daddies cherished their little girls.
I saw them cuddle them in their laps, hold their
hands while walking in the park, or kiss their cheeks
as they dropped them off in the mornings at school.
Deep in my heart, a dream was birthed.
I dreamed that one day,
I would have a daddy who loved me - not because I was pretty,
or made good grades,
or could play the piano well, but just because I was his.
I dreamed that one day
I would be a cherished daughter.
In talking to women all across the country,
I have seen eyes fill with tears when I talk
about the dream of having a daddy who loves me.
But the tears are not for me,
they reveal the longing in their own hearts.
Butterfly Kisses a song by Bob Carlisle that
climbed the charts in 2000,
received international recognition in both the Christian
and secular music industries.
The song was about the tender love between a
father and his daughter, starting from her birth to her wedding day.
Mr. Carlisle said,
"I get a lot of mail from young girls who try to get me to marry their moms.
That used to be a real chuckle because it's so cute, but then I realized
they didn't want romance for mom.
They want the father that is in that song,
and that just kills me."
So how does a single parent reassure
or comfort a child who longs to have that special
relationship with their dads like the one Carlisle mentions in his song?
One way is to point to them the relationship that they can have with their heavenly Father.
In the Old Testament, God has many names.
He is Elohim - the Creator,
El Elyon - God Most High,
El Roi - the God who sees,
El Shaddai - the All-Sufficient One,
Adonai - the Lord,
Jehovah - the Self-Existent One,
Jehovah-Jireh -the Lord Will Provide,
Jehovah - Rapha - the Lord that heals,
Jehovah--Shalom - the Lord is peace,
Jehovah-Raah - the Lord my Shepherd,
and many more.
In the New Testament, Jesus introduced a new name for God - Father.
It is the name that Jesus referred to more than any other
and the name that He invites us to use to address the Creator of the Universe.
Just stop and think about that for a moment. The God of the universe who created the heavens and the earth, who always has been and always will be, who is all-knowing, all powerful, and present everywhere at once - that same God invites us to call Him
- Daddy!
When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, He said:
But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.
Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you......
This, then, is how you should pray:
'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name....'
(Matthews 6:6-9).
J. I. Packer, in his book 'Knowing God' wrote:
"For everything that Christ taught,
everything that makes the New Testament new
and better than the Old,
everything that is distinctly Christian
as opposed to merely Jewish,
is summed up in the knowledge
of the fatherhood of God.
2 All other religions demand followers to worship created
beings (Mohammed, Buddha), but Jehovah the Creator,
the great I AM, invites us to crawl up in His lap,
become His child, and call Him Abba, Daddy.
He said,
"I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters"
(2 Corinthians 6:18).
Even the best earthly fathers have feet of clay
and will disappoint their children.
No matter what your children's past experience
with their earthly father has been,
devastating or divine, the truth is their heavenly father
is the only perfect parent.
He loves them,
cares for their every need,
is interested in all they do,
skillfully guides them,
wisely trains them,
never deserts them,
generously supplies for their needs,
always available to them,
and cherishes them as His precious children.
I accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior
when I was fourteen-years- old.
From that time on as I began to pray for my father,
God began to melt his heart of
stone and draw him with cords of love.
Five years after I accepted Christ, my dad
did come to know Jesus as Savior -
and even learned how to love me.
My dream came true.
However, God continues to remind me
that my dream to have a Daddy who loves me
came true the moment I said "yes" to Him, and became His child.
On this Father's Day, as you perhaps face it alone,
remind your children that they do have a Heavenly Father who loves them
with an everlasting love -
and that is cause for celebration
By Sharon Jaynes
