In the canonical Gospels, we find that Jesus constantly referred to Almighty God as "Father." Likewise, in his model prayer (the one commonly referred to as "The Lord's Prayer), Jesus taught his disciples to address God as their "Father." Likewise, in his epistles to the saints of Rome and Galatia, Paul said that Jesus had made them children of God, and that they were consequently entitled to refer to God as their Father.
Last night, we kept our eldest grandson, and it made me think about how I experience my paternal feelings toward my children and grandchildren. In short, I love being a "Daddy" and a "Papa." My children and grandchildren evoke feelings of love/compassion, joy/happiness, pride, patience, protectiveness, mercy, forgiveness, etc. I thoroughly enjoy teaching them new things, experiencing things with them, preparing meals for them, bathing them, doctoring their hurts, and tucking them into bed at night. In short, I derive a great deal of pleasure and good things from fulfilling that paternal role.
And, from what I know about our Heavenly Father's nature and greatness, I can only assume that what I experience is only a fraction of what "He" must experience in that role. Take just a moment to think about this. We are his babies - his children - the apples of his eye! Consider the pleasure and enjoyment that God must derive from our successes and growth, and the hurt he must endure when we stumble and hurt ourselves and each other. I don't know about you, but thinking about all of this makes me want to do better! I want to be a source of joy and pride for my Father - What about you?
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