"Daddy"

Saturday, September 12, 2009 (5:43 a.m.)

Oh Daddy God,

Yes Lord. “Daddy”. Today I need my Daddy. There are hurt feelings. Fearful feelings. Feelings of guilt and overwhelm. And this is the first time I have ever thought to just bring the whole mess right to You.

You are so good Dear Lord. Loving. Kind. Perfect. Thank You that it is because of Your fatherly love for each of us that we get to come before You exactly as we are. Truly Lord, I just envisioned a sobbing, grimy little kid who is not only welcomed by You, but tended to and comforted - dirt and all.

Thank You Lord. Thank You that when Your disciples would have turned the mothers and their children away (Matthew 19:14, Mark 10:14, Luke 18:16) You were “greatly displeased and said to them, ‘Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God.’” Mm. Thank You Lord!

Thank You that on such a day as this, I get to look outside my east facing window once again proclaiming that “This IS the day that the Lord hath made. I WILL rejoice and be glad in it!” (Psalm 118:24) Rejoicing in the beauty of another sunrise, Lord how I thank You for the greatness of Your faithfulness and the fact that Your “mercies begin afresh each day” (Lamentations 3:23).

Lord, we are in need of some fresh mercies around here this morning. On this day that we have set aside to celebrate a young man’s 17^th birthday, there is far more left to do than originally planned. A last minute change of plans, some miscommunication and a bit of downright childish behavior (by the grown ups of the household) have me asking You for help.

Thank You Lord that I get to come before You as Your very own child. According to Romans 8:12-17, I have ‘new life through the Spirit’. In the past Lord, I would have jumped up even earlier this morning to make up for lost time and things left undone. Today, instead, I turn to You - actively seeking Your will and the power of Your Holy Spirit to decide what actually needs to be done and what we can do without.

Lord, I read Your Word (and more words about Your Word) and I am buoyed and strengthened by them. The Bible Handbook tells me that because of Your Holy Spirit ‘we live in harmony with Your promptings’. “It is the Spirit of God within us, who raised Jesus from the dead, who is able to lift us up too, to a new and righteous kind of living.”

Lord, it IS to You and Your Holy Spirit that I turn this day. I put all of my hopes for this day into Your hands, asking that it would turn out exactly as YOU have ordained. Mercifully I ask that hurt feelings will easily be forgiven. Let the air here be cleared that we would truly celebrate the birth of this very fine young man.

“Our obligation is not to ‘try’, but to trust the Spirit of God within us and let Him lead us.” That is exactly why I’m here before You Dear Lord!

Eugene Peterson said Romans 8:15 this way, “This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike ‘What’s next, Papa?’ God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are.”

Tenderly touch each of us this day Dear Lord. We need You Daddy! Right here. Right now. I love You so much. “What’s next, Papa?” Amen.

(608 words ~ 6:45 a.m.)