Compassionate Love Blog: Displaying compassion for those who struggle with mental illness   (c)2017  Nancy Virden, Always the Fight Ministry

A lonely girl dreams of the perfect father. She imagines that when this man looks at his daughter, he sees beautiful possibilities.

As he listens to her pour out her daily, hourly joys, his attention stays focused. When she cries, he holds her. He disciplines her to keep her safe, but never harms her body or heart.

This perfect father continues to see his daughter’s charm and purity despite battle  scars  and  wrinkles  time has worn into her features. He believes her a success and forgets past failures. He loves his baby girl to the very end.

The girl awakens from her dream to sigh. She knows no father like this. In her reality, a father is imperfect, one who struggles with human selfishness, needs and will. For her, hope  of  knowing  a father’s unfailing love is but fantasy.

Then one day, the longing, disappointed girl meets another  Father.

This Father speaks softly with patience. His encouraging words, strong and enduring, build her confidence. He promises to go beyond her fondest hopes of being understood, accepted and loved.

Standing near, he whispers, “Come to me” every moment she breathes. She slows to listen and finds her yearnings lessened, her worries eased. In their place is a learned security. Trust is in the one who will never leave.

Drawing her close,  this  Father  breathes  in  her every word as if this communion were  somehow  his only source of joy. He joins her in designing life goals, shares the fun, and heals exhaustion from typical days.

Needs and emotions of other persons rampage through her home and heart, and this Father gives her wisdom. He cultivates her motherhood by demonstrating how to nurture and sacrifice for her children. Tidal waves of the world’s temptations threaten to sweep her young away, but this Father helps her to hold on tight. Then, standing by her side as she releases her grip, he teaches her how to let  go.

This Father invests in his daughter. He encourages her to have a renewed mind, and to be     a woman of conviction and insight. He sets her face toward the world and says,“Go get ‘em tiger,” and makes it possible for her to believe she can. He lifts her up with hope, and asks her to live humbly before him. These are his good gifts. 

This Father is not fantasy like a prince in shining armor. There is no one else, no matter how sensitive or strong, no other father or romance can fill the cavernous need in a daughter’s heart. To be apart from him is to feel so very alone.

He is not of this earth. His name is Yahweh, Jehovah, and I Am. He is the Creator, and Almighty God.

Upon returning from chasing illusions, the girl sees him in the distance and searches his face for a sign. He smiles with welcoming eyes and engulfs her in his waiting arms.

“Come daughter,” he says. “I am Abba. You are home.”

Happy Father’s Day

Today’s Helpful Word

John 1:12

“… to all who did receive [Jesus], to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God–“

 

*****COMMENTS ARE ALWAYS WELCOME (see tab below)

NOTE: I am not a doctor or mental health professional. I speak only from personal experiences with and observations of mental illness. In no way is this website intended to substitute for professional mental health care.