Father's Day
As we honour and say thank you to all dads for their sacrifices to their families, I woke up thinking that in this secular world, Father's Day and Mother's Day are compounded with commercialism. I love my husband, dad and father-in-law but I am also being reminded that God, my Father in heaven is the most sacrificial father of all.
When my husband got baptised in 2013, part of his testimony mentioned this - "...being a dad, blessed with two children gives me plenty of opportunities to reflect on my relationship with my children VS my relationship with God...". I still remember that to this day.
It is not a day of mere obligatory wishes, material giftings and extravagant meals but a day of particular emphasis on the role of a father, regardless of the situation or circumstances. Let us remember especially the dads who live in poverty and refugee dads who are displaced and stranded in the borders of countries, rejected by people but not by God. Also to the fatherless, children who have unloving fathers, disappointed dads who think they have failed their families, to frail mums and wives who are unable to do anything for their husbands today, may they be comforted that it isn't the end, that they are being sustained and loved by our Father in heaven. It is a time to learn and extend compassion and forgiveness even if it needs to be repeated a hundred times. It's also a time for fathers to love their children unconditionally knowing the children cannot reciprocate what fathers had done bringing them up.
When I was a teenager and although I didn't really understand Christianity then, I loved visiting a Christian bookshop in Kotaraya, Kuala Lumpur and this poem has stuck with me ever since.
So today, I want to sing His praise aloud. Thank you Father for first loving us and we want to reflect your love to others even to those who don't deserve it.