Article Summary – Short Version

Your heavenly father is probably not like your earthly father. He never abandons you emotionally or financially. He will never verbally or physically abuse you. He is not unstable and he always has your back. He empowers you as a son or daughter for a purpose that you were created for.

Opening

“Where are you?” are 3 of the most insightful words in the Bible. This is what the Father said to Adam and Eve in Genesis 3:9 after they disobeyed him and hid. Those 3 words still echo thousands of years later to each of us, “Where are you?” They are insightful about what the Father is like. Even after disobeying, the Father went searching for his children because he missed them. This article is an attempt to learn 9 truths about who the Father is. But before we start, respond to his question that is still being asked today by saying, “Here I am”.

Many people struggle to believe God loves them because of a dysfunctional physical mom or dad. We often come from broken homes. When you became a Christian, you became a part of a spiritual home with Father God, your spiritual father. This home is not broken and He most likely is not like your physical father or mother. We are on a journey to learn what he is like. The first thing to know is he wants a relationship with you and considers you worth dying for. Let it sink in.

1. Father God will NEVER abandon you emotionally

Nothing is more traumatic to a child than a family breakup. It is emotionally devastating. Earthly parents may break promises, but God NEVER will. We can develop the wrong idea that if our father or mother walked away from us, God will do the same. A spouse or a child may emotionally abandon you, but He will NEVER abandon you emotionally. Hebrews 13:5 says, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you”. 

2. Father God will NEVER abandon you financially

A loving parent, no matter how small there income, can make a child feel secure by providing food on the table, a warm bed, and clothes to wear. Unfortunately, in these days of deadbeat dads, tough times, and struggling one-parent families, many people grow up financially crippled. As a child of Father God, you can bank on God’s promises of provision. Matthew 6:31-33 says, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you”. We serve a generous God! 

3. Father God will NEVER verbally abuse you

Were you criticized as a child in a destructive manner? Did your earthly father want a boy, and you were a girl? Were you able to live up to their expectations? Father God speaks tenderly to His children. James 5:11 says, “We … have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.” 

4. Father God will NEVER physically abuse you

Have you met women abused by their husbands, or kids beat up by their father? It is not a pretty picture. They feel rejected; they become hopeless and either become listless or rebellious. Believe the truth: God is not an abuser. He is a good shepherd who protects us. God is an encourager and a destiny painter! If you have been abused physically, sexually or verbally, recognize that God did not approve of that behavior and He wants to heal you from the pain of that experience. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11). He wants to prosper you physically!

5. Your Father is NEVER unstable

How many of you had an alcoholic father or husband? When he came home, your first job was to see if he was drunk. If he was, you hid under the bed or ran away. One day he would be nice and the next he might be angry. The instability of his behavior can still carry trauma. God is not a drunk. Believe the truth, He never gets drunk, high, or out of control. Circumstances never affect God’s nature. He will always, always, always stay the same. He is predictable – predictably good, kind, and tender. No matter what fatherly wounds you may have suffered, and no matter how long ago the pain entered, Your Father can heal your heart and fill in the gaps. Reach out and receive the Father’s embrace.

My earthly father never told me he loved me. At least that I can remember. He was taught not to show emotions. But God does. He is like the Italians who kiss you on both cheeks when greeting you. I’ve met many men whose fathers never once said to them, “I love you.” Many of these men struggle with addictions to alcohol, drugs and other mind-numbing substances because they don’t know how to process the lack of security they feel. And women who never received healthy, non-sexual affection from their fathers often end up trapped in a promiscuous lifestyle because they’re searching for the love they were denied. Believe the truth: God is crazy about you and He wants to shower you with love! Your Father NEVER withholds affection. Be still today and ask God to show you his affection.

I have children. I tell them all the time that they are my favorite. They all say back to me, you can only have one favorite. I then ask them if they are a father? Of course, the answer is no. I then tell them that it is built into fathers to have many favorites. Father God is the same. Each of you are His favorite. 

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord”. (Romans 8:38-39) 

We cannot exhaust God’s love, ever. Your Father ALWAYS loves you unconditionally. He is always with us, for us, and cheering us on. When we do well, he loves. When we fall, he loves. What better thought could you have today?

6. Your Father ALWAYS has your back

Have you ever worried that you would miss God? If you are following God the best you know how, you don’t have to worry that you missed something and your life is ruined. Even if we miss some sort of cue along the way, God is big enough to get you to where you need to be. God can insert the backup plan right over the original and weld them together. He can make where you are at so productive, so enriching, that it’s as if the first plan never existed. Somehow, your left turn takes you exactly to where a right turn would have taken you. “he will never leave you nor forsake you”. (Deuteronomy 31:6)

7. Father God ALWAYS shows you that you are his son/daughter

He leads you from this understanding first. This is your true identity. It’s important to walk in this identity before you walk in your calling or assignment. You need to know who you are before you know what you are about to do. Otherwise, what you do becomes more important than who you are. How do you get meaning in life? How do you figure out who you are? Ask Father God for a relationship with him before asking him for an assignment. Your priorities are now right and he will take care of the rest.

8. Father God ALWAYS has a purpose for you that perfectly fits how he made you

Have you ever been in a partnership? God wants to do the same with you. “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10) God has created each of us with a unique purpose in mind. There is a reason you see the world like you do, and why you love what you love and hate what you hate. This verse shows there is a list in heaven of what He has for you. As you walk with him as a son/daughter, you will accomplish the most amazing things and have fun along the way! You will love walking with your Father.

9. Father God ALWAYS empowers you

As his son or daughter, he will empower you spiritually, physically, emotionally, and mentally to walk with him and do his assignments when he gives you one. This is in all areas of your life – job, relationships, parenting, marriage, etc. For instance, if you have a problem with something you are building with your hands, ask him about it. He knows how to build it. You are his child and he will mark your lives in favor beyond what we can work for or ever earn. Receiving his power happens through relationship. Get alone with Father today and let him love you and empower your heart as his son or daughter to shine as a diamond in a dark world.