Daddy!

So the other day we (me and the wife and five sons) are out together at a local outdoor mall, relaxing and enjoying time together. We visited a western store, which was rather odd since we're really not that "country", but my wife does have a pair of Fat Baby boots that she loves. Well, it was time to leave and I went to collect my four year old who I could clearly see ambling through the maze of clothing racks. I called his name: "Matthias." Still ambling, not hearing. "Matthias!" Ambling still, but faster now and apparently still not hearing. "Matty!" No good.

He was determined, it seemed, to head away from me as he tried to find his way through the labyrinth of hanging clothes. I quickened my own pace to catch up to him, realizing now that he wasn't hearing me and that he was growing more concerned about the fact that he could no longer see his parents, just western plaid and pearloid buttons.

Finally I managed to connect with his zig-zag pattern and there was a clear stretch of space between us. One more time: "Matthias!" He turns and screams, "Daddy!" and runs into my arms where he promptly breaks into tears. "It's OK, babe, I've got you now," I tell him. He held on pretty tight for quite a while after that.

Wow. What a picture. It struck right then and there how we so often find ourselves out wandering through life and have the realization, or at least the sensation, that we are LOST. We wonder where God has run off to, and we begin to get a little anxious. We quicken our worried pace and before we know it, we're running off in the wrong direction as fear fills our hearts. All the while, though, the Father knows exactly where we are and is calling our name to bring us back. He keeps track of us and knows the path we take. Finally, mercifully, He comes into our view, though we've never been lost to His, and we turn, cry out His Name and run into His arms, and weep. Sweet relief.

I am not a perfect father, probably not even an outstanding one, but I love my children fiercely. Knowing the depth of love I have for my kids, I realize how much more incredible the love of the Heavenly Father must be for me, and I feel very secure in that. It makes me want to love Him more.