He Is the Perfection of Your Earthly Father

So, where do you go from here if your view of father has been shattered? How do you move forward if your trust in the one who should have been the most trustworthy person in your life (your earthly dad) has been damaged or corrupted or blurred? How can you celebrate the fact that there is a great God in Heaven who wants you to know Him as Abba? If God is a father like yours, why would you want anything to do with Him? Well, here’s the good news — the life-altering news I’ve been waiting to share since we started this devotional: God is not the reflection of your earthly dad. He is the perfection of your earthly dad.

God’s not just a bigger version of your earthly father. He’s everything you’ve ever wanted your dad to be and more.

This is great news for us all! Even if your dad is a really wonderful father, you still don’t want him to be your God, and you don’t want God to be exactly like him. You want a God who is somewhat like him but infinitely better. And that’s what you have.

And if you’ve been trying to overcome the wounds of a terrible earthly dad, and you’re thinking you’ll never be able to relate to God as a father because you don’t even know how, I encourage you to think again. Even if your dad left a wake of pain and confusion and weakened you more than he helped make you strong, you can still imagine what it would have been like if things had been different.

It’s likely you have imagined what life would be like with a loving, engaged, encouraging, interested dad. What if your earthly father did sit patiently on the end of your bed and ask you to tell him all about your day? Haven’t you imagined what his embrace would have felt like? What it would have been like if he put the newspaper down or turned the volume down on the television remote and noticed you? Didn’t you wonder how things would have been different if he had showed up and sobered up and stayed true and defended you? Haven’t you tried to imagine your dad being like this?

The good news is that God is what you’ve imagined all these years. He’s everything you’ve always wanted, and so much more! You can use those longings and desires to find your way to Him, knowing that He’s not an oversized version of your dad, He’s the perfect father you have always dreamed of. From the pages of Scripture you can know that . . .

• You are the apple of His eye.
• He saw you long before you saw Him.
• You are His unique and purposed creation.
• You have been loved by Him since before there was time.
• He sought you and paid a ransom for you before you did one thing to deserve it.
• He never gave up on you.
• Before God ever asked anything from you, He gave everything to you in the gift of His Son.
• You matter to God.
• You have a destiny.
• You are a somebody.
• You have God-given gifts.
• You are not the center of all creation, but you are dearly loved by the One who is!
• You have access to the throne of grace.
• You have a seat at the table of Heaven.
• You have a God to call Father.
• And you have a God who calls you daughter. Son.

And your Father in Heaven is a Healer. He can heal all the wounds your earthly father may have caused you. He can pick you up and hold you in His care. He can redeem what has been lost and make all things new again. His arms are strong and His heart is good and you can trust Him.

Was this plan helpful? We adapted this plan from Seeing God as a Perfect Father: and Seeing You as Loved, Pursued, and Secure, by Louie Giglio. Check it out for more.