Abba… In the language of scripture, it is the equivalent of ‘daddy’. Jesus called God ‘daddy’……
“Daddy, everything is possible for You. Take this cup from Me. Yet not what I want, but what You want…” (Mark 14:36 my translation)
I have so often thought about the relationship of father and child, and how our perception of the relationships with our earthly fathers colors our perception of our heavenly Father.
I have a good father. I call him ‘daddy’. I obeyed him without question. I never feared for my safety, but at the same time, never questioned the consequences of disobedience.
As an adult with children of my own, I’ve learned more and more about my daddy. My perceptions of him as a kid growing up were often so wrong. I thought he was too strict, when he was in fact enforcing boundaries that provided safety not just for the moment, but even now, continue to bring me security. I continue to be thankful for those boundaries.
All daddies aren’t good. That is a horrible truth. Some just walk away. Some are abusive in devastating ways. I pray especially for those people.
There was a period of my life when I thought my daddy was unapproachable. (He never was really..)
There was also a period of my life when I was not confident in approaching God. I assigned to God the image of my daddy. While I was hesitant and afraid to go to daddy with certain things, I was terrified to go to God ! (‘Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Heb.4:16 ‘In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.’ Eph. 3:12 Hallelujah.!!)
Let’s not make God into the image of our daddy. Whatever fault there is in the relationship, ( and there are faults in all human relationships…) let’s not forget the tragedy of the garden. Humans all suffer from the disease of sin, we all share the incapacity of achieving perfection, especially in our relationships.
Our Daddy in heaven does not mirror our daddy on earth.
But we are so very blessed when our daddy here mirrors the Perfect Daddy of heaven.
I thank you Daddy for my daddy here, and for his commitment to You and to the family You entrusted to him. Give him long life and health.
