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He went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass away from him. He said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible to you. Please remove this cup from me. However, not what I desire, but what you desire." Mark 14:35-36 WEB.

After growing up in the bible-belt, my image of God was as a complete disciplinarian. An angry, white-haired, lightning-bolt throwing, super being who was stalking me. I thought He was called "The Lion of Judah" because He was always watching, ready to pounce on the unsuspecting soul that broke one of those commandments. But we weren't sure which ones, for there was a whole lot of those in the Bible, and no one here seemed to know for sure which ones we should keep. So in the country, each family kind of pick and chose which fit them best.

I mean, animal sacrifice was out in the traditional sense, but we happily ate pork chops and catfish. Looking back, I'm pretty sure that "love your neighbor" wasn't on our list either, as I never heard that mentioned. Also, it seemed that God didn't notice all of the bad things happening in the world. Yet, if you were to go dancing, to an R-rated movie, or spend a night on the town with friends, you would surely burn in hell.

It was rare for me to go to church when I was little, and never as a family. Once my older brother Randy, who had moved out and married, invited us all to a revival at his church. My stepmom made Dad choose between taking her or his kids. He took us.

I remember visiting the local church with a friend one night, and they were showing a movie called: "The Burning Hell." It was full of people like me but on fire and screaming. It made God seem sadistic. He sure had put an awful lot of work into developing methods to bring the maximum amount of pain and torture to sinners. There were horrific pictures of Jesus nailed to a cross, wearing a crown of thorns, and bleeding, which only seemed to enforce the idea. Oh, dear.

In stark contrast, my Dad here on earth was the greatest. In fact, that's what we had engraved on his tombstone: "The World's Greatest Dad." My mom left when I was one, and Dad struggled to raise his three boys on his own and work full time. He made huge sacrifices to keep us together when social services tried to adopt us out, but that's too long to share here. Suffice it to say that he would have given his life for his children.

In Aramaic, "Abba" is the English word that we use today for "Daddy." Jesus called His Heavenly Father "Daddy." This is an intimate, personal connection. Jesus could have used a dozen other names, but He chose this one the night that He needed His Father the most. So I had a great Dad, but from my distorted childhood viewpoint, it seemed like Jesus had an awful one. My Dad was loving and forgiving, where His Dad seemed to be living for the day of the great white throne judgment.

Somehow, at least in my upbringing, the church had managed to reverse the roles of God and satan. As I grew older, I began to build a relationship with our Heavenly Father. Instead of just hearing what others had said about Him, I learned that He was even better to me than my own Dad. He loves me, and I love Him. As I began to intentionally invite Him to be a part of my life, we grew closer, and He began to move in my life. He is the world's greatest Dad and is full of surprises. When I mess up, He helps me get back on my feet instead of destroying me in a fiery explosion of "righteous anger."

God is tender-hearted, and He has feelings. He is loving, caring, forgiving, merciful, faithful, patient, kind, and peaceful. The Lord keeps His promises. He really does love you, and He has the best plan for your life. He will remove your past and wash you as white as snow. The Lord will leave the ninety-nine sheep to seek the one who wandered off. So, invite Jesus Christ to be a part of your life. Read the gospels and learn about what He was like. It turns out that He has more in store for us here than punishment. There is hope and a future.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, please reveal Yourself to me in a special way as only You can. Draw me into a deeper relationship with You, and speak to me in a way that I understand. Help me to see the real You. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!

Note: Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:12-13) ~ If you have a prayer need, we are here for you! We and the prayer team are ready to lift you up at our private prayer page: RHM Prayer Network. If you are interested in joining the prayer team, here is how to get started Prayer Partners.