June 12, 2008 Daddy…Daddy…Daddy II
(He must love to hear our voice!)

“So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find;
knock and it will be opened to you…
IF A SON ASKS FOR BREAD FROM ANY FATHER AMONG YOU, WILL HE GIVE HIM A STONE?...
If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”
(Luke 11:9-13)

Prayer is not a formal petition that needs to go through speech writers, spell checks, rewrites, and approvals. It does not require certain key words or required prerequisites, except one: we acknowledge that we can only come to God the Father through His Son Jesus Christ, whom He sent to live in the flesh and die on the cross, only to rise from the grave and become the perfect sacrifice (propitiation) for our sins. Prayer is a time of father and child sharing real needs, real hurts, real concerns, and real love. It’s letting Daddy know our heart and Him supplying our needs. It’s real simple, as Jesus explained above. Just as we parents give to our children, God gives to us. More importantly, He gives us power through the person of the Holy Spirit!

There is one thing most of us lack: the innocence we had as a child.

“Therefore, whoever humbles himself as a little child is
the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”
(Matthew 18:3)

God is not a pompous, uncaring, untouchable government official. We need to look to Him as our Daddy (“Abba”, Papa), perhaps the Daddy we never had. Imagine the joy we feel when we hear our child call out our name. Imagine the joy God must feel as we call out His name… “Daddy, I need you! Daddy, protect me! Daddy, HELP! Daddy, thank you for caring for me! Daddy…Daddy…Daddy!” He must love to hear our voice! We need to grow in our desire to hear His voice as well!

When is the last time we crawled up in Daddy’s lap and really shared with Him? Have we grown too old to let Him love us as only a Daddy can? Aren’t we still (and always) His child? Only if we know Him as Lord and Savior as well! Ummmm…..something to think about as Father’s Day approaches!