A Father's Love...

 ^{Psalm 103:13-} Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.

On Sunday at church we read through Psalm 103. The verse that stuck out to me the most was verse 13. Of course Sunday being Father's Day my mind was on Jeremy and the wonderful Father he is to Jakob. My heart was struck, and then filled with gratefulness when I really thought about what this verse means. God gave us an example of His love for us in this verse. -(I realize not everyone has a good example of an earthly Father, and for that I am very sorry and I hope you have someone who has been a Father figure in your life)- When I look at Jeremy and the pride and love he has for Jakob it makes me very happy. I know that Jeremy would never do anything that isn't in Jakob's best interest. Sometimes he may have to sit back and watch as Jakob makes choices that would cause him some pain, (i.e. running and falling and scraping his knee, disobedience that need discipline,etc.) but ultimately Jeremy knows that it will help Jakob be stronger, make better choices and grow as a well rounded person. Jakob's daddy will always be there to pick him up after he's fallen, to wipe him off and encourage him to keep going. Now think about God as a Father. If our earthly Father's can love us that much, how much can the God who created us love us? God's love cannot change, it cannot be affected by circumstances as earthly love sometimes can. God the Father would never allow us to go through situations that would be detrimental to us. He does allow us to go through hard times, but it's always to make us better Christians, to help us to know Him better, to love Him more. Looking at God's love in comparison to a Father loving his children gives me comfort. It tells me that no matter what I go through God is doing what's best for me. It may be hard, it may be scary, but my Father only wants the very best in my life. Oh, and a little tidbit Jeremy told me...

Did you know that back in the Bible days they thought it was blasphemous to think of God as a Father or any sort of close way? He was God, so far and high above any man, he could never be considered to have anything personal to do with man. That's why the Jews hated Jesus so much. Jesus claimed to be the Son of God. Jesus came to show a different side of God. Yes, he is the creator of the world, and the Judge of the whole earth, but he loves us. Enough to send his own Son to bring us salvation. God desires to have that Fatherly relationship with us. I think many times I take that for granted. Something so special. Anyways, I thought that was interesting :)