Our Father, who art in heaven......

Fatherless. This was how much of my early teen life was spent. At the age of around thirteen, my mother had enough of my father's drinking. He was out of control at this point. He couldn't hold down a job, and when he did work, he selfishly used all of his money to fuel his habit. It was a thirst that couldn't be quenched, even in the face of losing his family. On my brother's birthday that year, my mother was at work, and my brother had some friends over for a sleepover. I remember this clearly because my father left us alone that night. There was a house full of children, unsupervised. This did not go over well with my mom. She gave him the ultimatum...no more drinking, or no more family. He chose the latter. Fatherless. I don't use this term lightly. Everyone has a father, right? From that point on, my father basically disappeared. We would only hear from him on random occasions, and then it was only for him tell us about what a hard time he was having. He chose, instead of holding down a job to support us, to live on the streets, homeless and drunk. Yes, I was fatherless. He missed every birthday, Christmas, Thanksgiving.....and on, and on, and on. Every time he did call, he acted as though we were supposed to feel sorry for him. He had such a hard life. Fatherless. What could motivate a man to abandon his three kids and his wife? This was something that plagued us as children. My mom had to do all of the supporting, and he didn't send any money, ever. He wouldn't work, and if he did he got paid cash to avoid his check being garnished. I couldn't understand what we had done to him that he didn't love us anymore. Still, as children, we stuck up for him when my mother was angry, we agreed to meet with him when he was 'passing through' on his homeless journeys, and we continued to honor him and love him as if he were not in the wrong in the least bit. It was a game he played with us. If we felt sorry for him, we didn't have time to feel sorry for the situation he had left us in. Fatherless. Maybe you have found yourself in a similar situation, or have felt abandoned in some way...discarded. You are valuable to God. He wants to be your Father. He wants you to share your heart with him. He will be your support when men fail you. He will guide you through the difficult decisions in life. Sometimes the only place we have to run to is His side. He will never leave you or forsake you. He is the Father you can trust. With Him you will never be fatherless.