Today on Father’s Day, we are celebrating all of our fathers and those who have been father-figures to us.
Jesus referred to God as his Father, but he also had a father-figure in Joseph, who helped raise him and guide him.
And, that’s why I love the gift we gave to all of the fathers today of the COMPASS, for our Dads point the direction and guide the way for us to follow in life.
Like the needle finding True North, our Dads help us navigate through the journey of life, always guiding us in the right direction.
And, as just as Jesus had an Earthly Father and a Heavenly Father, so do we.
So, today, as we celebrate our Earthly Fathers, we are also celebrating our Heavenly Father, who is our True North, our Guiding Light.
God is always leading us and guiding to our highest and greatest good.
We just need to keep our eyes focused on the compass, the inner GPS that is within us.
Just as the GPS in your car directs you and guides you, your inner GPS (which stands for God Positioning System) points you in the direction of God.
Throughout the gospels, Jesus referred to God as “Father,” but the Greek word used in the Bible was “Abba.”
And, “Abba” means more like “daddy” or “papa.”
Jesus was trying to explain that God wasn’t the angry, vengeful, judgmental old man up in the clouds, who punishes us and keeps track of our mistakes.
Jesus was saying that God is a gentle, loving “papa,” who is always there to guide us, protect us, and welcome us home.
One of the ways Jesus explained this was in his beautiful parable known as the Parable of the Prodigal Son.
If you remember, the son asks his father for his inheritance now, and then he goes and spends it all on wine and women.
When he realizes how unhappy he is, he returns home to his father.
And, what does his father do? Does he punish him? Does he tell him how disappointed he is in him?
No! The father hugs him and kisses him! He puts an expensive robe on him and puts a gold ring on his finger. And, he says he’s going to through a big party – a banquet – for his beloved son has returned home.
My friends, that’s how God, our Heavenly Father, feels about us. No matter what mistakes we’ve made (no matter what bad things we may have done), God doesn’t hold it against us. God doesn’t punish us.
Rather – with great joy! – God celebrates us and welcomes us home.
Like the Prodigal Son, sometimes we go astray. We think we know better.
The same is true for sheep, who often want to go their own way. They get lost and find themselves in danger.
But – as the Bible tells us – the Good Shepherd always goes out to find them and to carry them home.
The Good Shepherd is always leading us and guiding us to “pastures of plenty,” but we must stay the course.
We must keep our eyes focused on the Shepherd. We must attune ourselves to God’s voice…to the inner compass… the Divine GPS within us.
That’s why prayer and meditation and mindfulness practices are so important, because God speaks in the Silence.
In the Silence, we lose ourselves in order to truly find ourselves.
That’s what Jesus says to the disciples in today’s gospel reading for the 4th Sunday after Pentecost.
It is a challenging reading, for sure, for (as we just heard) Jesus is telling the disciples that if they wish to truly follow him, they must leave behind their father, mother, brothers and sisters.
What Jesus is getting at is that we have to put God first in everything (even before family) if we truly wish to follow in his steps.
You may remember the story from Matthew, Chapter 12 when Jesus is speaking to a large crowd of followers.
The apostles tell him that his mother, Mary, and his brothers are outside the crowd trying to get in to see him.
Jesus responds by saying, “Who are my mother and my brothers?”
And, then, turning to the crowd, he says, “These are my mother and my brothers.”
It may sound very harsh, but Jesus wanted us to move beyond biological family and to see one another as our brothers and sisters, our mothers and fathers.
Jesus wanted us to move from separation to oneness.
| And, that’s why Jesus says, “Whoever seeks to follow me, must deny his very self, take up his own cross every day, and follow in my steps.”
To ‘deny yourself’ and to ‘take up your cross’ means to surrender your own personal agenda and to make sacrifices in the service of Love. And, that is what our Dads do for us, don’t they? They sacrifice. They serve. They put the needs of their children before their own. They work hard, they encourage us, teach us, protect us, and love us. The love of a good father gives us a glimpse of the love of our Heavenly Father. No earthly father is perfect, of course. Every father makes mistakes. But when fathers seek to love, guide, forgive, and encourage their children, they become living reflections of God’s presence in the world. And, so, my friends, on this day that we celebrate and honor our Earthly Fathers, let us also remember that we have a Heavenly Father who is always there for us. When life becomes confusing, when you feel lost or uncertain, pause and listen for the still, small voice of God within. Trust the Divine GPS. For no matter how far we may wander, no matter how many wrong turns we may take, God’s love never leaves us and is always pointing us home. May it be so. Amen. Here are three follow-up questions for reflection and/or journal writing:
|