A few nights ago, bedtime prayers started differently than usual. My five-year-old opened her prayer with, “Dear Dad…” I let Abbi pray and then asked her what she meant. I wanted to find out if she had been addressing her daddy Chris or if she had been referring to God as “Dad”. This was an important clarification because if it was the former, I would need to have a conversation about only praying to God. She told me, “I was calling God Dad, because He’s like a dad. He’s a really good dad and He takes care of me.”
My heart was full as I heard her explanation. I felt so thankful that the things I have been teaching her had taken hold. “You’re right,” I agreed, “He’s a really good Father. He loves us so much.”
Later that night as I was sleeping, I awoke to my three-year-old needing comfort. She came into my room after a bad dream and wanted to sleep with me. I let her climb up in my bed and prayed with her for peaceful rest. Before we got back to sleep, Aurora said, “God is my daddy.” I agreed. She continued, “I don’t have a daddy right now because my daddy died in heaven but God is my dad.” I echoed my earlier sentiments that she was, indeed, loved and cared for by her Heavenly Father.
My daughters do not have a dad in the home. That’s not particularly easy. Yet it has been four years since that has been part of the household “normal”, so it’s also not something that feels like a void most of the time either. I’ve been running the show solo and while it hasn’t been ideal we’ve been managing.
There is so much I question in my parenting—so very much. My default in motherhood is to feel as if I’m failing. I’m only one parent and I never feel as if I’m “enough”. However, when my tiny girls can both identify, without my prompting, that they do, indeed, have a Father? That there is Someone who loves them, cherishes them, and cares about them? That there is a second Parent involved, one who loves them far more perfectly than I could ever hope or dream to? The truth is, they learned about this Jesus from me. I taught them about their Heavenly Father. I told them what a good Father He is… and this is evidence that I’ve done at least one very important thing right.
Thank you Lord, for these encouraging moments—and for being the Daddy both my daughters and I so desperately need.