Craig Smith
Psalm 68:5
Chorus
Father, father me, take my life
And father me
I am a child without a father's hand to hold
To lead and comfort me
A helpless offspring without a loving home
Outside on my own
Come and father me
Chorus
Let me abide within the shadow
Of Your wings
Protected by the wisdom of Your love
Knowing the assurance a father's love will bring
Come and father me
Chorus
I can't remember when I first realized I had a father. It just seems as if
Dad were always there--loving me, having answers to all my questions,
protecting me, disciplining me, comforting me when I was hurt. So often, we
take for granted the presence of an important "someone" in our lives, not
realizing how dependent we are upon that person. The first time I
understood the significance of this was when I was about seven years old.
My father took my older brother and me to a Cardinal baseball game in St.
Louis. After the game, Dad stopped along the street outside the stadium to
buy a souvenir for my younger brother who was not with us. Since in my
seven-year-old wisdom I thought I know just exactly where we had parked. I
did not wait on Dad and my brother, but took off through the crowd for the
car. What I did not know was that we had come out another exit on a
different side of the stadium and there were parking lots on all four sides
of the stadium. When I arrived at the exact spot I remembered the car being
parked, it was nowhere to be seen. A chill ran through me--then panic! I
ran back to where Dad had stopped--he was gone. For the first time in my
life, I was lost. There I was in a big, strange city with thousands of people
going in every direction, but I was the loneliest person in the world. I
wanted and needed my father. I turned around and headed back to the
parking lot again to make sure the car wasn't there, and I came upon a
policeman directing traffic. After listening to my problem, he made me stay
with him, because he know my father would come back looking for me. Sure
enough, in a few minutes my Dad came running toward me, picked me up in his
arms, and gave me a big hug. I had been lost--but he found me.
Just as my father has been with me since long before my conscious memory,
our Heavenly Father has been ever present with us since before the
beginning of time. He promises in 2 Corinthians 6:18, "I will be a father to
you, and you will be my sons and daughters." He is there when we are lost in
the crowd and lonely, ever waiting for us to be still and seek Him. He is
there waiting to pick us up in His arms and give us a big hug. He will cover
us and give us refuge under His wings (Psalms 91:4), much like a mother hen
gathers her little chicks under her wings to protect them from danger. He
is there and concerned about even one lost little boy in the crowd, for
Jesus taught that the Shepherd will go look for one lost sheep even while
the other ninety-nine are safe, and that our "Father is not willing that any
of these little ones should be lost." (Matthew 18:12--14) Yes, our Heavenly
Father desires for us to come to Him as a little child (Matthew 18:4, Mark
10:15) and allow Him to "father us." What loving, comforting arms He has!--
David Stubblefield
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