Being Fathered By God – Day 9

It’s day 9 of 14, time seems to move so fast.  I reflect on how I found it and am thankful that God is leading me through this year to do devotionals differently from years gone by.  I found this devotional: Being Fathered By God. The devotional seems very powerful and purposeful as it calls out how “Every man has had authority figures in his life, and much of what a man perceives about God was shaped by those authority figures. His earthly father is at the top of every man’s authority list.” So I took on the offer to join the journey into this devotional. Will you join me on this 14-day journey?

Scripture for Today’s Devotional:

• Romans 15:13
• Romans 8:28

‘May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. ‘

Romans 15:13

‘And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. ‘

Romans 8:28

God is good and His plans and purposes for us are also good and so we have the Good Book aka the Bible, God’s Word to help us live our lives to the full. Let’s not avoid or miss out on the opportunity to spend time in God’s Word. Let’s make time and take time to be with Him, in His Word, daily.

Let’s be the dads who are filled with joy because of our hope in God! Let’s be the dads who are filled with peace because of our trust in God! Let’s be the dads who overflow with hope by the Holy Spirit! Let’s be the dads who are living as salt and light in this world so that when people see us, see our joy and our hope they will seek God and praise God!

Let’s be the dads who love God! Let’s be the dads who seek God with all of our hearts, all of our minds, all of our souls, and all of our strength! Let’s be the dads who are called according to God’s purpose and live out that purpose to the full! Let’s be the dads who know that God is working all things for us because we know Him, we love Him, and we are called according to His purpose!

Let’s be the dads who are leading our wives and our kids so that all of our family is able to live with God’s joy, God’s peace, and overflowing by the Holy Spirit! Let’s be the dads who are leading our wives and our kids so that they too are living according to God’s purpose because of their personal relationship and love for God, trusting that He is working all things for good for them too!

Today’s devotional was provided by Michael Thompson where on zoweh.org they share the following: “Every man has had authority figures in his life, and much of what a man perceives about God and projects onto God was shaped by those authority figures. At the top of every man’s authority list is his earthly father. How your dad handled your heart has shaped you and contributed significantly to how you perceive God. Join us for this journey towards experiencing the heart of the Father and getting everything out of the way that is in the way of being a Beloved Son.“

Reading through today’s devotional, here are some takeaways for me: (check out the devotional on your own too to see if you pick up other nuggets, and please share your findings in the comments)

Through zoweh.org, you are able to download today’s devotional and many others.

For more information, please visit https://www.zoweh.org/youversion.

Takeaways from Today’s Devotional:
“Abba, Father“

• How do you know if something exists?
• Do you know or do you allow others to tell you?
• What if the world was trying to tell and convince you that “That kind of love—perfect love—it doesn’t exist.“?
• Let’s be the dads who draw near to God because we know He exists!
• Let’s be the dads who trust God over our own understanding, acknowledging Him so that He can show us the path to take!
• Let’s be the dads who know that God is love and as such perfect love, unconditional love, God’s love does exist!
• Let’s be the dads who remember that the rainbow is in the sky to show that God’s promises are true!
• Let’s be the dads who spend time in God’s Word to hear from Him and be filled up with the knowledge as well as the wisdom and discernment through the Holy Spirit!
• Let’s be the dads who not only receive and are filled with God’s love but also overflow and pour it into the lives of our wives, kids, and the world!
• Let’s be the dads who take hold of this scripture that today’s devotional points us to where Paul says:
  • “May the God of your hope so fill you with all joy and peace in believing [through the experience of your faith] that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound and be overflowing (bubbling over) with hope.“
• Let’s be the dads who hope!
• Let’s be the dads who are so filled with faith that we can live with faith even when we can’t see it!
• Let’s be the dads who are so filled with faith that we pray for everything rather than worrying about anything!
• Let’s be the dads who are living with the reality, the tangible effects of God’s love permeating and overflowing from our lives!
• Let’s be the dads who are bringing our wives and our kids into the reality, the tangible effects of God’s love permeating and overflowing from their lives!
• Today’s devotional gives us something to pause and think about:
  • “Oh, to hope again!
    It is very far from “irrelevant” or “uneventful.” The Father’s love has a tangible effect. If you haven’t been hit by it lately, overrun with his love, then it’s time. If you haven’t felt the goose bumps, been warm all over, experienced a cool chill, or felt a flood of joy filling you up, warming you, taking you to a place—if you haven’t felt giddy—then it’s time!“
• Let’s be the dads who are making our time count!
• Let’s be the dads who are spending so much time with God, seeking God, drawing near to God, loving God, talking with God, and listening to God that we have an intimate relationship with Him and allow His Spirit to fill us up to overflowing with the fountain that Jesus tells us will never run dry!
• Today’s devotional points us to scripture and the words of Paul:
  • “The question is, do you see it? In Romans 8, Paul says we can be certain that “every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good” (verse 28 MSG). A few verses later Paul concludes the chapter with:
    
    I am persuaded beyond doubt (am sure) that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities, nor things impending and threatening nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (verses. 38–39)“
• Let’s be the dads who see and experience God’s love in and through our lives!
• Let’s be the dads who notice and identify God’s love notes to our hearts!
• Let’s be the dads who share how we see God and experience His love!
• Let’s be the dads who share how we see God and experience His love with our wives!
• Let’s be the dads who share how we see God and experience His love with our kids!
• Let’s be the dads who share how we see God and experience His love with our world!
• Let’s be the dads who have a love affair with God between our hearts and His!
• Let’s be the dads whose love affairs start and end with God!
• Let’s be the dads who realize that God loved us first and so that is why we love God!
• Let’s be the dads who realize that God loves us most and is the author and perfecter of our faith!
• Let’s be the dads who realize our faith is based on love, God’s love!
• Today’s devotional shares an incredible experience and wanted to capture and share it here:
  • “Walking along the beach a few weeks ago, Robin and I strolled past hundreds of thousands of seashells, most of them broken. One shell among the masses caught my eye. There it was, looking up at me, the size of a quarter and the perfect shape of a heart! What are the odds? You can’t tell me the Father wasn’t saying to the Son, “Watch this, watch our boy Michael! Wait for it, wait for it . . . there! I knew he would find it.”“
• Let’s be the dads who lean on our Heavenly Father, trusting on and in Him over our own understanding, in all of our ways acknowledging Him because we know that He will show us the path to take!
• Today’s devotional has a message for us dads, our wives, and our kids and it goes like this:
  • “There is a Life the Father is imparting and bestowing to all his sons and daughters. It is a life of love and of training in love. Through ceremonies of validation and initiation, trials and errors, redoes and redeems, playgrounds and battlefields ALL invite us to engage. The Father’s love delivers Life to our hearts and then gives us the packages we can deliver to the hearts of others. Nothing can separate us from the Father’s love. Nothing. And yet, there are things that can and do get in the way.“
• Today’s devotional closes with this challenge for our time alone with God:
  • “How do you experience His love?“
  • “What is a particular thing or way God says or shows your heart, “I see you and I love you, here is something I got just for you.”“
  • “Is life happening to you or is Life happening for you?“
  • “Ask God, “What is in the way of my receiving your Love and Life?” then be still, quiet and listen.“