God, our real Father

“I will be a Father to you and you will be my sons and daughters” (2 Corinthians 6:18 NIV)

A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. (Psalm 68:5 NIV)
Think for a moment what it must have been like for Adam and his wife, created as adults living in perfect love and enjoying a friendship with their Creator and their Father. They lacked nothing; they were totally dependent on God and looked to him to supply all their needs. There was a simplicity of relationship which, as we know, was lost. The joy is, it is ours to regain.
 
As we grow up in a fallen world we start to build walls around our hearts. We are hurt by our families, our schools and our work places and so we try to protect ourselves against more hurt and pain. We have our own way of behaving in order to stay safe. We learn the social etiquette that enables us to put on a brave face but which does not allow us to share our heart. We develop gifts and abilities which lead to us doing our own thing and becoming independent. 

Throughout the Old Testament, there is a cry that comes from the Father’s heart which was verbalised by Jesus in John 14:18: “I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you”. God did not want to leave us in that state of separation for he simply could not leave us fatherless. He wanted to restore everything that had been snatched away through the fall, so he constantly sought to draw his people back to him. What he really wanted was to live in their hearts and, to God, this was more important than their sacrifices. 

God’s love is immensely personal. Although he is Father of creation and Father of mankind he is not distant or afar off. He is not too busy running the universe to be concerned with you. He is interested in a personal and intimate relationship with you.

We all need to know the gentle, kind and overwhelming love of Father God. All of us can enjoy the freedom that is promised to his children. We can become rooted and grounded in his love. It is not an optional extra. It is for you! God really, really wants to be a Father to you – personally, today and forever – to you!