“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)
We look to our heavenly Father for comfort today, as we miss being in close proximity to our dads here on earth. Whether we are parted from our fathers by distance, divorce, or death, prayer is God’s gift of comfort to us. When we don’t understand, we can turn to Him knowing He holds all of the answers.
Father, praise You for our fathers here on earth. We know that you placed them perfectly and specifically in our lives. And though life doesn’t always look on this earth like we feel it should in our hearts, we trust Your perfect love, plan, and purpose for our lives. Thank You for our dads. Without them, we would cease to be. They are part of your plan for our lives.
Some dads provide for us in ways that simply amaze us. Dedicated to their families, they work countless hours to foster our happiness and our dreams. Other fathers are gifted at connecting with us emotionally, guiding and encouraging us down hard paths and through difficult journeys of decision. Thank you for their faithful pursuit of You, and diligence to point us to You, too.
There are some of us who don’t know who are dads are, or have adopted dads that You have blessed our lives with. Still others of us mourn the complete loss of our fathers through death on this earth, and desperately need to be reminded of Your goodness, Lord. When Father’s Day reminds us of the gaping hole they have left in our hearts, heal any hurt that we harbor and help us extract all love from our relationship with them.
Help us to find peace in Your will for our lives and their absence. In the ways of the world that we don’t understand, swoop in with Your Spirit and reminds that we don’t need to understand… and sometimes can’t. In our faith, we are called to trust You and Your love for us. Help us to fill in the gaps that we are incapable of.
Fathers that live a long distance away from us don’t love us any less. Help us to find peace in that gap this Father’s Day, as well. Though miles separate us, nothing can part the love of father for his child, innately placed by You alone. Remind us to be thankful for loving fathers, though they may be far away. To be in touch emotionally spans the empty distance between us. Bless our fathers while we are away from them, and we pray for frequent visits and blessed reunions.
Forgive us, Father, for the things we want to blame our early fathers for. Remind us of their humanity. We are all imperfect, and can never expect any human to completely fill our hearts and provide for us. That place is reserved for You alone. You are deserving of the vast space of our hearts, and we have to remember that.
As much as we love our dads, miss our dads, look up to our dads, or feel bitterness, anger and resentment towards our dads… they are only people, just like us. They battle the same curse of sin that we do, and cannot be expected to be perfect. Whether we look to our fathers’ leadership in faith, or pray for their salvation, we have to release our judgement to You.
Father, bless our dads today in a special way. Release them from any guilt they may harbor for mistakes they have made as parents, knowing we all travel that road as well. Bless and heal any heartaches or physical hurts that ail them. Lift their spirits as they miss us today, due to the space between us. Assure them that they hold a special place in our hearts, our lives, and Your love. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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