He’s a Good, Good Father on this Good Friday!

I’m smiling because I posted this family photo on what is supposed to be a somber, serious day. But is it really? Were it not for THIS day, we wouldn’t have an Easter. This photo was taken at our church in Shawnee, OK. It was a big deal to dress up for Easter. Had to have new Easter outfits and an Easter bonnet. I had enough hair back then that served as all the hat I needed. After church, it was all about the Easter egg hunt. The kids would have a spirited time of finding them all.

Remembering that Easter fanfare, as sweet as those times were, doesn’t hold a candle to this year’s Easter experiences. It seems the frivolous things were, well, just frivolous. Oh, I’m sure many will still be having Easter egg hunts in their backyards, but because we’re nestled into our homes, it’s easier to hone into what Easter is really all about. Introspection of the holy of holiest times that goes from Friday's sorrows to Sunday's alleluias!

Did you sleep well last night? Jesus didn’t. He had not been to sleep! All night long and in this day, He was interrogated, lied about, beatened, tortured, suffered and died on a cross that was meant for murderers and thieves. Today is Good Friday! Good? How could this day be called GOOD?

I can’t help but consider all our world is going through right now. Maybe some “Good Friday” issues like the suffering, the dying, and so many unknowns. I get it. The struggles are real – lost jobs, financial insecurity, kids testing every nerve their parents have because they’re not used to isolation, the concerns for our medical field and essential services workers. It is truly a time like we could never imagine.

I titled this post “He’s a Good, Good Father on this Good Friday”. Really? How could a Dad be called a “good dad” when He allows His Son to die in such a horrific way? “Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer …” (Isaiah 53:10). Of all the powerful verses in the Bible, this one brings me to my knees. How much does God the Father love us? Enough to sacrifice His only Son. Because the death of His Son would bring salvation to His children. That means salvation to you and to me and to all who know Him as Savior and Lord. Indeed, He is our good, good Father.

But, how could this day be called GOOD? Because out of the appallingly bad came what was inexpressibly good. And the good trumps the bad because the bad was temporary while the good is eternal. God’s love and grace came to us soaked in divine blood. The Cross is God’s answer to the question, “Why don’t you do something about evil?” “Why do You let bad things happen to good people?” God did do something. One look at His Son on the cross should silence the argument that God doesn't care about human suffering.

Without Jesus’ death, we could never know Him. We could never have eternal life. Our salvation cost a lot. And Jesus thought “they’re worth it”. And that is what’s so good about Good Friday. There is no such thing as a resurrection without a death. There is no such thing as an Easter without a Good Friday.

What is this message? For us, to never again wonder if we are loved. God thought our eternal life was worth the death of His only Son. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him, would never perish, but have eternal life." (John 3:16) Now, we know why God is a good, good Father and why this day is called "Good Friday".

The Questions and the Questioner

The Questions and the Questioner
For anyone who has been around a two or three year old very long, I know you know the many questions they ask:. “What’s that? Why? When? Where? How?” At first it was endearing, but before long – we get worn out with all those questions. Can we even imagine how tired God must get from our questions? “Why, God, why?” “When will it happen?" “How can I do this?” “Where will we go?” "Where are You?" "Why did You allow that?" And as a loving Father – even beyond what we could ever be to our own children, He responds with answers that aren’t exactly those we want to hear – because His answers involve time, His timing! Father knows best for us.

God has questions of us, as well, not because He doesn’t know the answers. He knows all things. The questions God asked throughout Scripture were to get us to think, to repent, return and to be more devoted to Him. God’s very first question was to Adam in Genesis 3:9: "Where are you?" Oh, God knew where he was -- but God always gives His kids the opportunity to think --- and ask ourselves the questions: "What is going on in your heart? Who are you listening to? What are you believing about Me that is not true?"

Jesus, God in the flesh, asked questions to help us:
~ He asked: "Do you believe?" Many people came to Jesus asking for a miracle, a healing, a free lunch. Like those people we come to Him with our shopping lists, Jesus said: “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” (Matthew 21:22) Oh, Lord, we do believe. Please help us overcome our unbelief!" (Mark 9:24)

~ Jesus asked "Do you want to get well?" What an odd question to ask of a crippled man. Of couse he wanted to get well, but that man gave excuses why he couldn’t get there. When we complain to God about our circumstances or give Him excuses as to why we are still in the same place, spiritually or emotionally, perhaps the question He still aims at our hearts is “Do you want to go to a new place where God can be your all-in-all?” I want my response to be be: “Lord Jesus, I want You. Open my eyes to see You for Who You are. Open my ears to hear Your voice. Heal my legs so I can follow You. Heal my heart so I can love You more.”

~ Jesus asked: “Why are you so afraid?” Oh we know that "ask" time and again to His disciples. In Matthew 8:26, Jesus asked them why they were so afraid about the wind and waves. After all, He was right there in the boat with them. If the Son of God was with them, surely they would know they would get safely to the other side of the lake. AND, you and I have Jesus with us in every circumstance we encounter. He promised to never leave us. (Hebrews 13:5) So, what are we so afraid of? I want my answer to be “Forgive me, Lord, for fearing that anything is stronger than You or outside of Your control.”

~ Jesus asked: “Why did you doubt?” It’s easy to believe in God when we’re asking for our daily bread and for Him to bless our jobs and keep our families safe, but what about when God asks us to do what seems impossible? Jesus told Peter to come to Him when He was walking on the water. Peter did step out of the boat but “when he saw the wind, he was afraid and began to sink and cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately, Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:29-31) Are we still doubting Jesus after what we’ve seen Him accomplish in the Scriptures and in our lives? If Jesus can walk on the water, turn water into wine, and give us living water, surely He can keep us from the waters that threaten to rock our boat.

When we have questions – He always has answers. And, just like our little ones who ask and ask and ask – we have the answers for them and in time – the right time – they’ll know the answers. May we come to KNOW our beloved Father God, Who is not only the answer-giver, He’s the answer-maker and in due time, we’ll know His where, when, and how, our answers will come. In the meantime, we become children, like He asked us to and we trust Him because He’s a good, good Father. He is perfect in all of His ways – and perfect in His love and timing for us.

BFF! What Can I Do to Bring You Joy, Today?

I'm sure God loves when we come to Him in prayer, but usually, when we check in with Him, it is only to give Him our long prayer request and wish list. Can you imagine how He must feel when the only time we go to Him, it is only to present Him with our wants, desires, and needs? Then there are those who never ask anything of Him. They take pride in not having a “wish list”, but a “thanksgiving list”. God is such a good, good Father and He is receptive to each request we make and He loves our hearts of gratitude and thanksgiving. If we know He sees and hears us every time we pray and every time we come to Him with hearts of gratitude, can you imagine how He would feel if we visited with Him as truly our best friend who had wonderful friend-to-friend conversations with each other?

The idea of God as a friend doesn’t diminish the fact that He is our Heavenly Father. He is also our closest, best friend. I would never go to my best friend and just ask her for things and tell her what I need her to do for me. Neither would I incessantly thank her for being my friend. I would tune in to my friend’s heart and we’d mutually share about our families and what’s going on in our world. I’d ask her if there was anything I could do to help her.

God is our Friend Who is ALWAYS loving, caring, guiding and directing us, so maybe our conversations should start with “Lord, what can I do to bring You joy today?” That simple question will lead to answers. Here is how He answered me. I took a friend to lunch to encourage her. I heard His still small voice say: “This brings me joy.” Those words came from deep within. It confirmed that God was delighted by what I was doing. He saw something I didn’t. Perhaps it was the fact that I was encouraging His girl and building confidence in her. I’ll never know for sure, but I like to think I brought God joy and that was enough.

On another day, a friend messaged me. She was having a bad day and having to move out of her home immediately. I went to her, helped her pack and carry loads in my car for her. There it was again, an inner knowing that I brought God joy. It’s easy to assume that it’s the bigger things that bring God joy -- like telling someone about Jesus or changing the world. Certainly, these are beautiful in our Father's eyes, but these small moments matter to God, too.

As we begin our everyday conversations with God asking, “What can I do to bring You joy today?” our spiritual ears will open. We will discover that some of the smallest events of our day are actual miracles as we partner with God to love people.Coming to God as a friend as well as our Heavenly Father draws us into the wonderful relationship Paul talked about in Romans 5:11: “So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.”

When we ask "What can I do to bring You joy today, Lord?" We just might be surprised at the answer.

John 15:15, “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.”

My Heart AND My Tummy are Full

Please indulge me that last day of birthday celebrations then I'm done for another DECADE! It was said of God by St. Paul in Ephesians 3:20 “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think…..” That is God Who exceeds our greatest expectations and that was my sweet family this last weekend with a 70th birthday celebration that was above all I could have ever asked or thought. I've been giving a brief overview of my weekend's celebrations, topped off with the finale yesterday morning when they wouldn’t let me come downstairs until the festivities were ready to continue at a breakfast fit for a queen: cream gravy and chocolate gravy, biscuits, eggs, bacon, and fruit, followed by gifts and “special plate” times of hearing words from each and every one of my family sharing what I meant to them. To say I was humbled and a blubbering Nana puts it mildly. Then we had a sweet time of praise and worship as Staci led and Payton played the piano while we sang “Good. Good Father” and “God’s Reckless Love” followed by prayer. I was so thrilled that we gave God thanks for the many things He has done for me and for us, as a family. Then we headed to a local historical site for family photos followed by Flores Mexican Food. The pace didn't slow down as we headed to the bowling alley for family bowling and back home for the 70-candle salute on the cake that we thought was almost out of control before I could get them blown out. It was a sight to behold.

Are You a Good, Good Father?

Are You a Good, Good Father?
Happy Father’s Day to all dads today, whether you are a natural father, adoptive father or a father role model and mentor. You deserve a tribute if you have been and are a good, good father! Father’s Day brings me precious memories and so much gratitude for my own sweet daddy, my wonderful father-in-law and my precious husband who are celebrating this Father’s Day together in heaven. And especially for two amazing dads -- my two precious sons: Ryan Wuerch & Larry Wallace – men who are amazing fathers and who lead their families by God’s example to them. God bless you, Fathers!

I love the popular song “Good, Good Father”. Here’s why I think it’s so popular and resonates with so many of us. Maybe we had a very good representation of our Heavenly Father by the father we had on this earth. Or, maybe we had no representation of our Heavenly Father by any of the men in our lives. Whatever the case may be, we desire a good, good Father and we have one in our Heavenly Father.

I’m sure the inspiration for this song was because of so many in this generation who are fatherless and this song provides answers that only a good Father can provide. We are all finding our true identity in the love of our Heavenly Papa. We’re finding out that He's loving and caring and so close that we can be embraced by Him -- any time, anywhere.

As the song goes, we’re finding out He’s perfect in all of His ways…to us. He loved us before we loved Him. He has always been this way. This Father sent Jesus because He wants all of us to know that He loves us all exactly like He loves His Son. Jesus’ desire was that every person on the planet knows love by the love He shared among His followers. “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another.” John 13:35. We are wising up to those “Love one another” words.

We’re finding out who we are in the Father’s embrace. This is what this song is about. And when we finally see Him as He really is, we find out that we’re not “dirty little sinners” to Him. We’re His new creation and old things have passed away. We are His beloved sons and daughters and the apple of His eye. We are learning to dance with Him and let Him lead. We are jumping up into His arms of peace, security, and safety. We are becoming obedient, faith-filled children and we’re making Him smile – an ear to ear smile as we bring Him pleasure when we love like He loves and gives like He gives.

Fathers – isn’t that what you desire of your children?

Here’s Chris Tomlin singing that wonderful song “Good, Good Father”! I pray that you settle the matter once and for all – let our Father embrace you, restore you and call you His beloved child. You’ll find out how GOOD, our good, good Father is to you!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfJrxvVnmkE

He Tells Me I’m Never Alone

Because of the 24/7 hours a day of living/working/playing together for most of our 44 years of marriage, I really never knew loneliness, or for that matter, being alone. But, seasons changed when he graduated to heaven and I had the opportunity for both: being alone and being lonely. Great news is I didn't choose either. I chose a sweet place of solitude. Loneliness is inner emptiness and solitude is inner plenty especially when our inner plenty includes acknowledging our Plentiful Father is always with us..

Now don’t get me wrong. I love hanging out with my friends, attending church, shopping, playing games, socializing, being a part of women’s groups, prayer groups and spending as much time with my kids and grandkids as possible. But, right here at the front side of 2017 I'm embracing this sweet journey of solitude. It’s a journey of choice -- from “It’s all about me and what I don’t have and what I need”, TO “It’s about personal maturity and communion with God Who assures me I am NEVER alone, that He is has plans and a future for me and His plans for me outweigh my plans for me.”

Jesus explained His solitude like this in Matthew 16:32 “The hour is coming when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone for the Father is with me."

I understand solitude is the opposite of companionship and both have their places. I love spending time with my besties and my family. And, I even enjoy my iPhone that gives me news updates and music at a push of a button. But I also understand the importance of “being still and knowing He is God.” Psalm 46:10. That is where my strength for today and hope for tomorrow comes from. I know that "The Way" I need to go, "The Truth" I need to know, and "The Life" I live is in Him alone. (John 14:6).

I’ve tucked myself away in this little secret place of diving deep into the waters of God’s love and grace. I have several resource books with me, my Bible, my computer, my journal – all for use in this “Treasure Hunt” of “seeking and finding, knocking and waiting for the door to open to me.” I have no idea where this search and rescue will end, but I do know that I will come out knowing I am loved more than I knew possible and I will love Him more.

Need love? Seek Him. His arms are open wide and when you hug Him? No contest. He will always be hugging you way longer than you could ever hold Him. After all, He’s our “Good, Good Father” and He knows what’s best for us. Oh, how I love Chris Tomlin’s song, “You’re a Good, Good Father”. It describes our Father's deep love and His tender whispers that tell us we're never alone. Here are some of the words::

I've heard a thousand stories of what they think You're like,
But I've heard the tender whispers of love in the dead of night.
And You tell me that You're pleased, and that I'm never alone.

You're a good, good Father.
It's who You are, it's who You are, it's who You are
And I'm loved by You
It's who I am, it's who I am, it's who I am.

Listen to this beautiful song and feel His Father love to you today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_m5ZWchiZo