*Terry doesn’t have a dad. Well, everyone has a dad but not everyone has the privilege of knowing their father. Such is the story with Terry. So the idea of feeling connected with God as a father figure comes as a little bit of a challenge. Terry is in middle school and yesterday I met him. He is spending two weeks at “Son Camp.” It’s a camp held in Whites Creek, TN just north of Nashville and it is a part of the ministry of Onnie Kirk through the Fatherhood Foundation. Onnie has a ministry to fatherless boys and “Son Camp” is part of the overall investment in these guys. Notice the name is “Son Camp” not “Fatherless Camp.”
I visited “Son Camp” this week and got to hang out with the boys and after lunch, we sat in the dining area and talked for a while. Onnie shared a story about Terry. Just a day earlier, Terry was late for a meeting there at camp. One of the rules at “Son Camp” is that you have to be on time. Terry showed up late and missed a meeting and Onnie stepped outside to talk with him about it. Onnie said, “Son, why don’t you go over to the chapel and spend a little bit of time talking to ‘The Father’ about what happened here. Ask Him what you should take away from this experience.” Terry replied, “Mr. Onnie, I’ve never heard from God before. I’ve never heard Him speak to me the way you say He speaks to you.” Onnie explained further, “Son, it’s really pretty simple. He is your Father and you can just go in to the chapel, get down on your knees and talk to Him in the same way you and I are talking right now.” So Terry did. Several minutes later Onnie saw Terry come out of the chapel and he was so excited. Onnie said, “Son, did you talk to the Father about it?” “I sure did.”, Terry replied. “And what did the Father say?”, Onnie asked. “Well… He spoke to me and He said that I need to be more responsible… and if I’m more responsible I won’t have this problem anymore.” For the first time in his life a fatherless boy heard the voice of his Father and the advice was simple, loving and profound. Maybe this is why they don’t call it “Fatherless Camp”, they call it “Son Camp.”
What’s Your Father Story?
Everyone has a “father story.” I hope your father story is a great one; full of meaningful moments, wisdom and laughter. But I realize many people live their entire life struggling with their personal father story. Some grow up with dedicated fathers, some have disconnected fathers and some were deserted by their fathers and never knew him. But here’s the great news… all of us can be graduates of “Son Camp!” When we enter into a personal relationship with God we are His sons and daughters and we claim our spot in His family. So it’s important to engage with Him and give Him the place He really deserves. When things go wrong, when we don’t know what to do and when we need wisdom, why don’t we do what Terry did and go get alone with Him for a little while and just simply ask Him to speak to us and tell us what we need to do? We really don’t need to live as orphans… because we are not.
In Proverbs 1:5 there are three very important truths that will really impact our Father Story. If we engage with God as our Father in these three ways, it will change everything.
1. Listen to Him. “Let the wise hear…” vs. 5
* Truly engage with God as your Father and listen to what He says to you.
2. Learn from Him. “…and increase in learning…” vs. 5
* Listen with the heart of a student fully intending to learn more as He reveals truth to us.
3. Live Different. “…obtain guidance…” vs. 5
* Listen with the heart of a student to learn more, fully intending to live differently based on God’s guidance as a Father to us.
It’s Time To Talk To The Father About It
Chances are, there is something going on in your life today and you are handling it as “an orphan.” You are trying hard to figure it out on your own. Maybe you aren’t. You’ve possibly given up on it altogether and just accepted the fact that there is no hope and things will never change. Listen, I understand… I’ve been there a few times myself. I hate to admit that there was a time I was really mad at God. So, let me encourage you to find the time in the next 24 hours to go spend alone with “The Father” and talk to Him about the burdens you are carrying right now. And make sure to ask Him what He wants you to do as a next step. Listen carefully to “The Father” because He’s really looking forward to talking with you. And welcome back to “Son Camp.”
*Terry is not his real name in order to protect his privacy.
