The Fathers Embrace

Some days life hits you hard. It seems to have come out of nowhere. Doubts, pains, worries, desires that are not right, and temptations may fill your heart, mind, and soul to lead you astray. Sometimes it can be so pressing that it crushes you into bits. But when this happens, when you least expect it, because it will happen, turn your heart and soul back to Jesus. Cry out for His help.

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face;
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.
(Turn your eyes upon Jesus)
Hymn by: Helen H. Lemmel

Keep this constantly in mind. Satan is on the prowl, night and day, to attack those he sees that could be a threat to his cause. He will go after the weak and the strong, especially those weakened by sin or not continually seeking the Lord. Undoubtedly, he will also ferociously attack those God has given a great call to save souls from hell.

If you stop praying, reading His Word, or seeking to be instructed by His Spirit, you may have starved yourself of the spiritual nourishment you need to keep fighting the good fight. As a result, you have weakened yourself and become an easy target for demons to attack. Therefore, you must continually renourish your soul with the bread of life to fight against the evil forces you can not see.

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 1 Peter 5:6-8

Be like to prodigal son and come back to Jesus. Turn back to the Father and run to Him. Repent for the sins that you have committed and throw yourself at His mercy. He will see you from far away and run to meet you. He will wrap His loving arms around you and lavish you with His love and forgiveness. When He forgives you, He will also energize you to stand up straight, with His armor on tight. You can then move forward to walk in His Spirit and will.

And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this, my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to celebrate. Luke 15:20-24

The Lord does excellent work within your heart and soul when you seek His face, humbling yourself before Him in truth. His heart is waiting, moment by moment, to embrace His children and forgive their sins. He wants to put His loving arms around you with His loving embrace. He will pour His heart upon you and shine His light so that you may see clearly to follow Him and not stray.

When Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” It was a call for all to believe in Him to follow Him so that you may see the light and be saved from the destruction that comes from following the blind over the cliff of temptation and deception of the devil. To give you eyes to see what is truth and life so that you may live eternally with God now and even more so in the future.

So when you find yourself beaten to the ground by temptation or struggle, turn your heart and eyes to Jesus. Run back to the Father’s arms. Cry for help. Praise Him with your lips through the pain. Worship Him when you do not feel like worshipping, and take the bread of life back into your heart by reading the Word of God.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones. Proverbs 3:5-8

Then show others that you are just like them, not better than or greater than anyone else, but the same. No matter what nationality, race, color, or creed. We are all the same; sinful, fallen, and need a Savior. Therefore, everyone must turn to the Lord Jesus Christ, who died on the cross for my sins and yours.

He is the only way to the Father, who is waiting to embrace His children. He loves you dearly. Yes, that is you if you are willing to believe in Jesus Christ as your Savior. If you are ready to repent and turn away from your life of sin.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already because He has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. John 3:16-18

We all need God to forgive our sins and fill us with His Holy Spirit to be born again. We all need Jesus to change our hearts and minds. It is the only way we will make it to Heaven. Not by anything we have done. Jesus already paid the price necessary to satisfy God’s wrath for sins.

He will clothe you with His righteousness like a robe and cleanse your mind, body, and soul from sin so that you may be in right standing before the Father. In this way, He will grant you eternal life and make you an heir to the Kingdom of God to live with Him in complete peace and joy for all eternity. Naturally, you don’t want to miss Heaven, where there are no more tears, pain, sorrow, or remembrance of anything hurtful ever again. But you must turn to Jesus.

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” Revelation 21:3-4

Praise the Lord, for He is merciful, gracious, and loving towards you. He is patient and will welcome you back with open arms when you humble yourself before Him and turn from sin to follow and obey His commands. There is no one in all creation like the Lord who loves you with an everlasting love and will embrace you as you have never been embraced before.