Psalm 68:4-6, Zephaniah 3:14-17

Tracy Williamson on how God can heal our father wounds.

Tracy Williamson

I love the phrase in Psalm 68:4-6 that God is a Father to the fatherless. It creates a picture of God as being tender-hearted, there for us and always acting on our behalf. Most importantly, it shows that He understands the pain we feel when we are inadequately fathered. He is saying that He will make up to us for not being loved and cared for by our earthly dad's, but is that really possible when we can neither see or touch Him? Can we truly experience His love?

A couple of years ago I had a deep sense in my heart that God wanted me to write a book about His Father heart. I was shocked because my own experience of being fathered was very difficult. I lost my dad to cancer when I was just seven and the man who replaced him, my stepfather, was verbally and sexually abusive. This made me very fearful and I had no concept of being nurtured by a father figure. I became a Christian at 19 when I was at college and that was the beginning of a deep healing journey. But with that kind of background how could I write a book about God's Father heart?

The wonderful thing about knowing God is that He does enable us to hear His voice and one day He spoke these words into my heart, "If only you knew how much my heart breaks for all my children who don't know a father's love and daren't believe that I could love them. I long for them to know how dear they are to me and that there's nothing I wouldn't do for them. My love overrides the deepest rejections, failures and brokenness. I want all my children to know me as Father and that they can experience my love." (© The Father's Kiss)

Through that prophetic word He answered my misgivings and I am pleased to say that the book has now just been published and is called 'The Father's Kiss'.

Do you struggle with that same ache of fatherlessness that I did? In this passage in Psalm 68:4-6 it says, "He sets the lonely in families." As I look back I can see that He has brought many people into my life who have shown me His Father love with skin on!

I share in the book how as a new Christian when I was very low one day, I reacted badly to someone's negative remark and ran away in an explosion of painful memories and raw emotions. I ended up in a bus shelter in the middle of the night a long way from my lodgings. I was desperate, but God suddenly spoke into my heart telling me He was the Father who would always be there for me. He brought to my mind that my whole life mattered to Him, the happy moments, the struggles, the hurts and grief... He was always there for me and wanted me to learn to relate to Him in that way. Then an amazing thing happened: I was totally lost as I am partially sighted and had been in too much of a state to note where I was going. It was dark and stormy, but He led me, even causing a bus to stop right next to me, to a couple who became like mum and dad to me.

His love in guiding me to them and their love in welcoming me into their family made me understand His love in a real way. He longs to do this for you too. Your every heartache matters to Him, He rejoices over you and in everything He is cheering you on. I pray you will know the joy of His Father love, just as He has helped me to know it. If you'd like to read my book it is available from Amazon or Eden or MBM Trust www.mbm-ministries.org.