In our devotions so far, we have examined the meaning and importance of the words our heavenly Father. They describe the Divine Person we pray to and hint at his character and absolute power. We pray to such a God because he is willing and able to answer us. But what should we ask for first? Too often, we begin our prayers with a perfunctory nod to God and then immediately get down to more important business, namely, ourselves. Such prayers are exercises in sinfulness. In order to experience God through prayer and develop a mature spirituality, we must get … Continue reading Day 14: Focus on God’s Powerful Love for You

God is our heavenly Father. He created us, saved us, and provides for our needs. So, when we pray, we ought to remember and give thanks for his powerful love. Unfortunately, we do not always feel God’s love. Sometimes, we feel that God is ignoring or neglecting us. When we are anxious about our material needs or disconsolate about our spiritual condition, we want to feel God’s reassuring hand and hear his soothing voice. But we don’t. What should we do? First, we should remember that feelings are not reliable guides to reality. In high school, I competed in a … Continue reading Day 13: Fatherhood, Feelings, Facts, and Faith

A third and final reason we call God Father is that he is the Creator of and Provider for the entire world. James describes him as “the Father of the heavenly lights” (James 1:17). Paul writes, “there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live” (1 Cor. 8:6). No wonder, then, he writes, “his whole family [literally, ‘all fatherhood’] in heaven and on earth derives its name” from the heavenly Father (Eph. 3:15). Or … Continue reading Day 12: The Father as Creator

The first reason we call God Father is because he is “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph. 1:3). The second reason is that he is the Father of all believers. Jesus had a unique relationship with God, but we can have a relationship with him too, although in a different way. That difference can be expressed as the difference between a natural-born and an adopted child: Jesus is God’s natural Son, but we are God’s adopted sons and daughters. As a natural Son, Jesus shares the Father’s DNA. He is divine by nature. We, on the … Continue reading Day 11: The Father as Savior