Perpetually I find myself asking questions that I don't know if I, myself, can answer. Last night in CrossWalk I proposed a question that I would like to ponder a bit deeper. I also want to discuss some positives and potential negatives, or road blocks.
In Isaiah 9:6 the coming Christ is referred to as, "Everlasting Father." To me personally this idea has a wondrous tone. My mind is filled with imagery of my childhood and all the things my father has done for me. I have never been disappointed or abused by my father. My dad, whom I refer to as Pops because I can, has been an amazing example of a father. My honest prayer is that one day, when, "Drea," and I have children, I can be half the man my father has been to me. This both excites me and scares me. I don't know if I can live up to what he did. I know he is human and has faults. I have seen some of his faults but the good trumps the bad. I see in my Dad things that I want to be. It is because of that very thought that I am excited about Christ being an, "Everlasting Father," and what brings me to tears.
I don't know about anyone else but I am sometimes terrified about the idea that Christ is my eternal father. It is not because I fear some cosmic paddling. I just don't know how to live up to Christ. I can attempt to be like my earthly father because I know that he will mess up one day and is not perfect but how can I live up to perfection itself? How can I become like divinity? I know the churchy cliche's that tell me that if I read the Bible enough and hug enough people then I will be like Christ. I just think there must be something more to being like Christ. I sincerely want to become like my Dad. I want to teach my kids and love them as he has loved me. As for Christ, I love the idea but tend to carry a defeatist attitude. I guess I assume that there is no way I can be like him, so I opt to not even attempt the impossible. I unfortunately have no answer or cute phrase to make this any better. Just a frustrated heart that fears messing up and having my eternal father shaking his head.
I am going to talk about another part of this issue in a latter addition. This is just the first section of this discussion.
5 comments:
I dont guess I have ever thought about it that way. I, too, greatly admire my dad. I think he's the most amazing man in the whole world...i really do. I know all my brothers hope to be half the man he is, and if I was a guy I would hope the same. In the same way, I've seen my fathers' mistakes but this doesnt in the least bit alter my view of an amazing father/husband/leader/ect. And I know God is my heavenly father and I should want to be like him and it just seems so totally and completely intangible. It doesnt even seem like something I could almost grasp at. I guess I've grown up with my earthly dad, lived with him for 18 years, watch every decision he made, listened to every word he said and I can take that and apply it to my own life. But God has more present than my dad has ever been or ever will be. He'll never leave me, never even leave the room i'm in...he'll always be with me...he'll always talk to me, i have his word to see the example he's set for me. Yet it still seems so impossible to acheive.
Hope,
I agree completely. I sometimes wonder if I get my picture of God from my father. If that is true it opens a huge can of worms that I am not ready to look into. I sometimes wonder why we lean so heavily to our father. I understand they raised us, but why do we desperately want that kind of a connection?
:D
you already know what my answer to this is. but i'll post here anyways, just for the sake of your self esteem.
i don't get my image of God from my father because i know, he wouldn't want me to. i love my dad, he's a great man, but he isn't someone i fashion myself to be like or would want to picture God as.
then again, i could be coming at this from the wrong perspective.
the other thought i had was that i don't necessarily find "Everlasting Father" to be my favorite of the four names. i lean more towards "Might God" i can't remember who said it, but "Mighty God" kind of encompasses all four names, rather than just an aspect of God. and, i'm all for that picture of God as mighty and powerful. but, i think that has more to do with my life, and the connotations behind "Mighty God" more than anything else. if that makes much sense.
I can't say that I get my image of God from my father either.. Not to say that I don't love my dad and that he isn't a great man, I'm just used to not being around him very much. My Dad has always had to work away from home, or when he is at home works like a beast to make enough to support his family. My Dad is awesome, but I can't say that when I think of God that I think of my Dad. When I think of God I think of this Awesome Being, that is always there, and is everywhere. Also it'd be hard for me to get my image of God from my Dad because my Dad doesn't believe that everything in the Bible is true. Infact, if he died right now he would probably go to Hell, and it absolutely tears me apart inside to know. I've tried times before to talk to my Dad about the Bible and Christ but it always falls apart one way or another. My Dad is hard-headed, just like I am, and he'll fight it just like I used to. I know why he thinks the way he does, because I used to feel the same way. It's just extremely hard to talk to him about it because he ends up dominating the conversation with his "philosophies" and how Church is so hypocritical and how some random king could have written whatever they wanted in the Bible. Yet he'll then contradict himself and say he believes in God and Christ... I commend you Joellen for staying strong like you have inside your home with hardly any Christian relatives close by to fall on. I almost weekly fall back on my mom with things that bother me and urk me, and althought she might not be the "posterchild for spirituality" she's an extremely well grounded woman in her faith.
thanks David.
and when i read your comment, i could really see where you're coming from.
like with my dad, if i got my image of God from him, i don't think i would like going to church or God as much as i do (hope that doesn't sound wrong) but, my dad's just hard to understand, and hard headed. he jumps from idea to idea, and i've never really had the nerve to ask him what he really believes. he's lived for so long, and jumped so many different beliefs, that i really don't know what to think. and my dad really never talked about God.
i don't know though. i think for me, i'm a lot like you David, in the sense, i'm hard headed like my dad. i won't let what's inside my home or family tear me away from my faith.
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