Our Heavenly Father

 

 

“A lack of fathers in the household is the problem.” We’ve often heard that statement made to explain why so many problems exist in the Black community. More often than not, the statement is used as a deflection to avoid having to discuss and tackle serious social and economic problems that exist in our society. That said, there is no question that a lack of fathers or father figures can have devastating consequences on the lives of children. Studies have shown that children that do not have a father figure in there lives are:

1. More likely to have behavioral problems;
2. Less likely to graduate from high school and go further into academic and professional studies;
3. More likely to turn to lives of crime;
4. More sexually promiscuous at younger ages;
5. More likely to abuse drugs and alcohol. 

That is only a few of the detrimental effects of fatherlessness on children. Despite the efforts of some in our world to devalue the role of fathers, fathers remain an important part of the family structure and society as a whole. Even the Bible tells us that good men are a boon to their children.

The righteous who walks in his integrity -- blessed are his children after him! - Proverbs 20:7

We know that parents being good does not always mean that the children will turn out that way, but the presence of good parents, at the very least, raises the chances that the children will grow into morally upright people that reflect the values instilled in them by their parents. Most of us can acknowledge the connection between the presence of a good earthly father and the good upbringing of a child. Why is it then so hard for us to understand how important our heavenly father is to our spiritual growth?

 

So often we try to do it all on our own. Too frequently we go through our lives making big decisions and taking impactful actions without even thinking to consult God. Those of us who have earthly fathers have no problem going to those fathers when we need help, particularly when we know our fathers have strengths or expertise that would be helpful. Shouldn’t we be just as quick to run to our heavenly father for assistance, especially given that he is strong and has expertise in everything?

 

Sometimes the problem may be that we don’t always feel worthy of asking for God’s help. We know that we sin and don’t always follow God’s commands. As a result, we feel uncomfortable going to Him for something we need or want. Sometimes, we simply feel that what we want or need is not something God would want to provide us. Instead of trying to understand why he might not want that for us, we cut him out of our decision making processes. That is a bad practice. We want our lives to be good, but by excluding God and his input, we prevent ourselves from the good we seek. As the Bible tells us:

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. - James 1:17

If we want to walk the right path in life and ‘live our best lives’ as the common phrase goes, we have to include our heavenly father. He’s as vital to our spiritual growth as our earthly fathers are to our physical growths, and unlike what is often the case for our earthly fathers, God is always here for us. Many, unfortunately, do not always have a physical father in their lives, but they do have God. 

Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation. - Psalm 68:5

God is the father that never fails, and the Bible reinforces that idea over and over with the many references to Him as a father. However, we do have to be careful when comparing God to our earthly fathers. It’s a good analogy, but all analogies have a limit for which they are accurate. Our Earthly fathers are human like us. Their jobs are to raise us to adulthood, and one day, if everything works out, every child grows to stand on an equal level with his or her parents. God is not a human. No matter how far we rise and how much we grow, we can never stand on equal footing with him. God will always be above us. Our goal is not to reach His level as is the case with our parents. Our goal is to be obedient to Him to the best of our abilities. Even that works in our favor. God is sovereign. He could have made up arbitrary rules that existed only to amuse him, but that’s not what he did. His commands exist largely or our benefit, so obedience to him is good for us. 

 

Fathers, both of the heavenly and earthly varieties, are important and vital to positive growth of children and the world. Men especially should not forget about the benefits of having strong father figures in their lives, because one day those men may get the chance to play that same role. If they understand how important that role was for their growth, they won’t balk at the opportunity to play the same role for someone else even if that someone else isn’t related by blood. Similarly, believers should not forget about the role that God plays in our lives. If we always acknowledge what He does for us, then we’ll be just that much more able to share with others about His greatness and perhaps help them to find the Father that they didn’t know they had.

 

 

Chris Lawyer