I Love Spending Time With My Daddy!

I love the quiet of the morning. Every morning starts the same. I scan my emails and open my Bible to spend some quiet time in study and prayer. That’s one of the blessings of being retired. I can set a regular time each day to spend time with my Father. My Abba. My “Daddy.” That’s pretty much what Abba means – it’s that close, intimate Father-child relationship just like I would feel with a loving daddy, but much better than any human daddy can ever be. This relationship with my Abba is my most cherished relationship because he understands me most and still loves me.

It is amazing to think about it, but this Creator of the whole universe loves me and wants to spend time with me. Me! He put each star in just the right spot in the heavens. Every blade of grass and every grain of sand is just where he wants them to be. He painted every brightly colored fish in the ocean, some so far down that human eyes may never see them. But he does. He carefully formed the mighty mountains and the raging seas. Everything. Every single thing is intentionally touched by him.

In All of Creation, We are His Favorites!

It is obvious that our Father takes great delight in all his creation and every one of his creatures. But above all of them, he has a special place for you and me. That relationship is his favorite, and he cherishes every moment we want to spend with him. In fact, when we pray, he stops and leans his ear just to hear what we have to say! Just think about that. With all the noise and busyness and chaos going on everywhere, our loving Abba wants to hear what we are saying. “I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy. Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live.” (Psalm 116:1-2)  You see, we are that important to him.

Yes, it’s really true  — God loves you. I know you’ve heard that 1000’s of times. We know it in our heads, but sometimes it doesn’t seep down into our hearts. We get too busy, too consumed by the everyday “stuff” that we miss out on the chance to just be loved. Oh, dear sister, I hope that today you can be embraced by the most amazing love ever. I hope you can feel and know that this incredible perfect love is for you right where you are today. No strings attached.

So, what can I say that you haven’t already heard? Maybe we all just need reminding of the beauty of God’s love for us. You know it started even before Genesis 1:1, ” In the beginning, God…”

He Loved Us Before Time Began

He knew you and loved you and wanted a relationship with you before time. You. Not just “mankind” but you. He knew what you would look like, how you would see yourself when you look in the mirror when applying your makeup. He knew even then, your thoughts, your dreams, your mistakes, even that you would be sitting there right now. Even then, even knowing all about the good and bad of who you are, he adored you and wanted to claim you as his beloved daughter.

I like how the New Living Translation paraphrases Ephesians 1:4-8: “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So, we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.”

Yes, you were part of his loving plan from the start. Think about that for moment. It sure amazes me! (It gives me some warm fuzzies, too!)

Our Worship Shows Him Our Love

And my grateful response to his amazing love is worship. Oh, how he loves to hear our worship, our singing praises (whether in key or not does not matter to him), our longing, our expressions of love and adoration! He never gets tired of us wanting to be close to him.

Our prayers, whether well-worded, or awkward and weak, or even unspoken, bring us to him. He has open arms. We can crawl into his lap and just talk. That kind of love never gets old.

But here is what is most profound – we can never love him more than he loves us! Nope. We can’t “out-love” him. In fact, even the love we love him with is a gift!

Why Would He Die In Our Place?

He’s the One who stepped down from Heaven while we were still covered in all our dirty sin. He saw something no one else could see. And he loved us.  He. Loved. Us. Why? I still can’t understand it. But he revealed to the world our true worth as he quietly stood before the executioner and died in our place.

What does that really mean that “he died in our place?” We weren’t there all those hundreds of years ago, right? How could his death have anything to do with us?  Oh, my dear one, we are as dirty and helpless in our sins as every person that lived back in Jesus’ time. We are just as lost and deserving of death as they were. Jesus knew that back then. In fact, he knew that even before the world was created!  He knew we would need a Savior. That was the Father’s plan even before time began! And aren’t we glad!

Jesus’ death encompassed everyone, including us today. When he was on that cross, he thought about us. You see, we are the guilty ones sentenced to death. It was our sins that nailed him to that cross. And although he was perfect and did not deserve it, he took our place and died for us. That’s unbelievable, isn’t it?

Because He Loved Us and Still Does

Why would anyone do something that extreme?  Well, it’s because he loves us. He wants us to be forgiven and have all our filth washed away. He wants us to live forever with him in Heaven. Even when we don’t understand it, or even when we don’t feel worthy of it, we are forgiven, we are clean. We are his.

One of my favorite songs is “How Deep the Father’s Love For Us.” There is a line that says, “Why should I gain from his reward? I cannot give an answer. But this I know with all my heart: his wounds have paid my ransom.” This link is to a beautiful version of that song with the lyrics. I hope it will mean as much to you as it does to me. (https://youtu.be/SKDujmtyAVk?si=1-RLcpX5xe5xS_dt)

So, what does all this mean for how I live my life every day? Is it just “business as usual?” If I have truly encountered the richness of his love, there is no way I can go back to my old way of living! You see, Jesus came to give me a better life, an abundant life, one that is filled with joy and peace and confidence when I face trials. His reality is better than mine. Why would I not choose to hang on to that?

His Perfect Love — I’m Forever Grateful!

I thank him for his mercy and grace every day! I want to always live forgiven and grateful for what he did for me. I never want to forget what he went through on that cross. That perfect love is something I just cannot take for granted. I hope you feel that way, too.

And when I truly understand what he did and the depth of his love, that is something life-changing in every way! Living forgiven means there is a new pep in my step, a peace that is not determined by my circumstances, and a new vision to see others the way he sees them. I want everyone to know the love I know. The hope I have is not anything this world can give you. So I don’t dare keep quiet. This is certainly not a secret to keep to myself! Jesus Loves Me! This I Know!

Prayer:

Dearest Father, We know how much you love us, but sometimes we get distracted by the struggles in our lives. Help us to set aside all the concerns that are taking over our hearts so you can fill us with your presence. You are here with us right now. And all you want is for us to know how loved and precious we are. Thank you for loving us perfectly no matter what. In Jesus’ perfect name, AMEN.