God's Kids
"A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling." Psalm 68:5
I hope you had a loving mom, or dad, or both. Or perhaps your grandparents or surrogate parents took good care of you. But if you didn't, no worries - there's hope.
If your parents were absent or let you down in childhood, then there is no doubt you have an even better opportunity to know God as your perfect Father today. God is a Father who will care and provide for you always, for your every need. He knows us so well He knows the number of hairs on our head! "Even the hairs on your head are numbered." (Matthew 10:30, Luke 12:7)
He has the power to fill in the pieces we missed as children, and even now, in a very real sense!
When I was growing up, my dad was emotionally absent. Even he will admit that he didn't know what a feeling was until he was 40. This caused me to distrust him and men in general. I had many holes in my heart because of the absence of my dad's encouraging words and nurturing. I didn't have any confidence, I was afraid of people, and I had a poor self-image. I didn't feel loved, accepted, or appreciated.
It took a long time for my heart to mend. But God, in His infinite grace, showed me how He was my perfect Father. He showed me that although my own father had shortcomings, (as we all do), He would take care of that and fix the things that were broken in my life, including my broken identity. And He did - through circumstances, through people He put in my life, through His Word, and through my learning how to hear His voice. It says in John 10:27, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me."
The truth is that no family is perfect, and we all need God's love and grace to fill in the gaps. When we come into the kingdom of God by receiving His grace, we are no longer orphans - we are adopted as His own. "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption. And by him we cry, 'Abba, Father.'" Romans 8:15
Ask God today to reveal His truth to you about being a child of His. He has the power to fill in the gaps of everything we missed!
Related resource: God is Good: He's Better Than You Think by Bill Johnson
