The BEST Dad

A year goes by fast, doesn't it?  One year ago I was looking to celebrate my first anniversary with my husband; now I find myself saying "it's been almost 2 years!"  One year ago I was hoping to soon be pregnant; now today my baby's due date is only 4 days away.  One year ago I was blogging all the time, with so much to say I had to pace myself on what to write and share; now I find myself, still with plenty to say, but realizing that life, work, kids, responsibilities, and pregnancy took up a lot of my time!

And one year ago I was processing the news that my father may have cancer ... tests soon after confirmed it; now, a year later, I find myself still processing all the implications of the diagnosis.

Yesterday, June 16 2013, was Father's Day.  I always reflect on my parents and how blessed I am to have them on these types of days, but yesterday was different.  Just this past week we heard more news that the cancer continues to spread.  The effects of the disease and the chemo that treats it are really starting to wear on my dad.  And on Father's Day, a day when most children give token gifts of some sort, the only thing I wanted to give my dad was relief from pain and a good night's sleep - two things that I do not have the ability to give.  Anything else I could have gifted to him felt silly.

Yesterday was not a typical Father's Day.  Oh, usual things happened, of course ... we celebrated the night before with dinner and just being together, my favorite family activity of all ... we went to church and worshipped ... I gave hugs and "Happy Father's Day" wishes liberally ... I read all the Facebook posts in honor of dads and made my own ... but my heart was heavy with burden for my dad's health.

As I found myself reflecting and praying throughout the day, the Lord revealed several things to me.  I want to share a couple of them with you and trust that God will use them in your life in the way that only He knows.

As I read through the hundreds of posts on Facebook I noticed how many people said something to the effect of "Happy Father's Day to the BEST dad ever!"  Now, I love words and love to analyze and weigh them, and I found myself thinking a lot about the word 'best'.

'Best' is a superlative, the form of an adjective or adverb that expresses the greatest possible degree of that adjective or adverb.  Also, the article typically used with the noun being describe by a superlative is the definite article.  For all you out there who do not spend your days at work teaching grammar, let me show you what I'm talking about ... A good dad ... A better dad ... THE best dad.  See the difference?  "A" is an indefinite article ... could be talking about any dad.  But "THE" is a definite article ... there is only one in mind.  And each person who used that word "best" to describe their dad had just one in mind - their own - and he's undoubtedly the BEST - none other can reach a greater degree.

(I apologize now for leading you in to the scary part of my brain without warning and will unashamadly admit to you that yes, this is what I do on a regular basis ... you probably don't want to have access to any more of my thought bubbles, lest you be whisked back into the nightmarish portions of your high school grammar class.)

Back to business ... the BEST dad.  I think I have him.  You think you have him.  How can this be?  People, the word BEST is it - there is none greater!  We must settle this now!  Who has THE BEST DAD???

Perhaps you are reading this and thinking, 'I would never use that word to describe my father ... I would use a different superlative, WORST.'  Which leads me to show you how God solved the issue at hand.

Our dads are human, each and every one of them.  In my opinion, my dad is the best.  He is the most generous, kind, loving, supportive, encouraging man I could ever ask for as a father ... yet he is human. And the Bible tells us that "there is none who does good, no, not one" (Romans 3:12) and that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).  So as great as we may think our dads are, they are all human, do nothing good by the sinful human nature, and fall short of glory.

However, the one thing Terry Hines did throughout my life that, in my mind, sets him apart from so many others is lead me to the one true God.  This one God, the great I AM, who is always good, in whom there is no shadow of turning, who saved me out of my sin through ultimate sacrifice, grafted me into his royal family and became my Heavenly Father.  And let me tell you, HE IS THE BEST DAD EVER.

So, to my earthly father I say, "the greatest thing you ever did for me was care about me enough to introduce me to the BEST father, my Heavenly one."  I hope all of you reading this know the Father I am talking about.  He is Creator, Lord, Sustainer, Redeemer, Alpha and Omega, Everlasting.  I wish we all had earthly fathers who led us to the BEST father, but I know that is not the case.  But I pray, no matter what your situation with your dad may be, that your heart be softened and you let the BEST dad love you.  He is "a father of the fatherless" (Psalm 68:5) and will not leave you orphans (John 14:18).

As I continued reflecting throughout the day about how blessed I am to have a father who led me to the BEST dad, the Lord revealed to me that the best gift I could give my dad was within my reach.  It's nothing tangible.  I did not have to wrap it, present it, and watch my dad open it.  I still couldn't give pain relief or sleep as a gift, but I trust that God can and I continue to pray for it.  But, the one gift I can give my dad that will honor him the most, is living each day of my life to serve the Lord he loves.

You see, my dad has placed his life in the hands of his Creator and Savior.  I know this.  And more special to him than any tie, gift card, tool, gadget or gizmo I could find on a shelf to present to him, choosing to follow Christ in my daily walk is of utmost importance.  So, dad, to honor you every day, not just on Father's Day, and because you played a crucial part in my spiritual upbringing, I have placed my life in God's hands and I live only because of Him and for Him.  May this be my gift of unending thanks.

Do you know the BEST dad? If so, are you choosing to follow him daily, even if the path leads you to the wilderness?  I pray you can answer yes to both of these questions and trust that the comfort and peace surpassing all understanding comes your way every day.