Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Absent Father, Absent Image: Desperate for an Identity










Absent: Not present; missing. Not existent; lacking. Astray, devoid, gone, no-show, removed, blank, unavailable, vacant. There came a point in my life when I asked myself "how would things have been different if I had a father?" Would I have played sports? How can someone measure something that they never had before. How can the absence of a father be measured if you never experienced the presence of a father in your life. Was the image of my mother enough to replace the vacancy left by an absent father. Was the image of my mother sufficient enough to shape my identity as I grew into a man. As I sit here and ponder these words, I can see how all along my life was being shaped by the invisible hand of God.

When I gave my life to Jesus is when I found myself in a position to understand that my identity was not absent because of an absent father. If I was created in the image of God then the essence of who I am is wrapped up in the character of God. If God created us then he knows why he created us and for what purpose he created us. What is your identity wrapped up in? Is it wrapped up in your career, your relationships, your family, your position(s), or your past? Only the one who created you can guide you into the fruition of your full potential. Every inventor has a specific purpose for their invention. I did not event myself so how can I know the purpose for myself? I must first seek the one who invented me. Who are you seeking ?

1 comment:

Unknown said...

The absence or lack there of a father figure in the natural sense does effect your relationship with your heavenly father.

It can be a great hindrance to person to see God as a father if they nothing to reference from. (of course everyone mature differently spiritually, but in essence). One of the many roles of a father is to protect and to provide, and that person that has not experienced that in natural sense from their father, will have a hard time accepting, and believing that God will be able to fulfill those roles, whether it be due to lack of faith, disappointment etc.

But through life's circumstances gives God an opportune time to make himself manifest to any individual to fulfill that father role.