Daddy’s Home.
In the Regency era, children were expected to be seen and not heard. Kids within the rural working class toiled in the fields. Children in the city were often needed to help feed their families by working long days in textile mills, factories, or other hazardous jobs, such as chimney sweeping.
The wealthy handed off their children to nannies, tutors, or governesses. Fathers played almost a non-existent role in their kids' lives, while mothers often shared a meal with the children before shooing them back to the nursery or schoolroom.
It’s sad to think that Regency fathers weren’t present in their children’s lives. Some of my fondest memories include helping my dad build things in the garage, him running alongside me down the soccer field, or us whizzing downhill on a sled, snow spraying in our wake. He taught me to save money, ride a bike, and drive a stick-shift car. While he had a formidable temper, I knew it never lasted long, and that once his anger subsided, whatever I had done to make him angry was forgotten and forgiven.
It was in those moments that I decided to go “help” him (I’m certain I slowed down his work) that he would show me how to do something new or drop in a nugget of wisdom that stuck with me.
The term Fear of God used to be confusing to me. Fear was caused by something dreadful (like hairy spiders). The term respect made more sense in that I had a healthy respect of my dad’s temper, one, because I could get spanked, and also because I didn’t want to disappoint him. Now that my dad has passed and is in heaven, I’ve realized that the Fear of God also means a fear of living without God.
A life without God is grim and aimless. We’d be adrift without the anchor for our souls. A God-sized hole exists in our hearts that worldly things can't fill. Those who've hardened their hearts toward Jesus, trade eternity with a loving Heavenly Father for fleeting earthly happiness that leaves a residue of discontent. It crushes my soul to think of even spending one day without God.
Prayer is a gift. The idea that God desires a relationship with His children and longs to hear from us is incredible. There are many people who’ve had an absent earthly dad. Maybe he wasn’t around, too busy, or showed conditional love. A big hole was left where a father-figure should have been, but I want you to know. God will fill it if you let Him. The all-powerful God, who made the earth and the heavens, wants to know how your day went. He wants to celebrate with you when you succeed, dry your tears when you hurt, and pour out His wisdom and favor upon you. He doesn’t tire of listening to your concerns, fears, doubts, and joys.
How often do we take for granted the blessing that we get to have a relationship with our own creator? Esau traded his birthright for a bowl of stew (Genesis 25:29-38). Are we being that flippant with God’s grace and favor in our own lives?
Or are we worried about coming to Him stained and dirty? Don’t be. Jesus’s blood washes us clean. His sacrifice on the cross was a blood atonement for our sins (Hebrews 4:19). Don’t worry about dragging baggage before His throne, because He’ll put His yoke upon you and share the load because His burden is easy and His yoke is light (Matthew 11:28-30). Don’t worry about your walls of hurt and wounded heart of stone, because He will give you a new heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26).
He just wants to be with you.