Father's Day Tribute

Father's Day is a hard day for me. My Dad has been gone for almost nine years but I still miss him and think about him almost everyday. I am so thankful for the 20 years I had with him. My youngest sister was only six when my dad passed away and she has only a few memories. The last time we talked about him she said it was getting hard for her to remember his face and this scares her. It breaks my heart that he has not been here to see my sisters grow into beautiful young women and to meet his three grandsons. It is so ironic to me that he had all girls and now all grandsons. I wish they could have met their Papa. I have a feeling they would have hit it off well. I struggled alot with wanting to know reasons behind my Dad's death. Without going into too much detail, his death was very sudden and tragic. Death alone his hard but when it slams into you like a freight train your left stunned, shocked, hurt, confused, and wanting answers. I so wanted to understand the big picture. There were three quotes that I wrote down and read almost everyday for awhile. The first is from Isaiah 55-The Lord says, "My thoughts are not like your thoughts. Your ways are not like my ways. Just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts." I love this word from God. It reminds me that He is in control and even when I don't understand, I can trust His heart. The second is from Max Lucado and it is just point blank, in your face. "The point is this: God owes no one anything. No reasons. No explanations. Nothing. If he gave them we couldn't understand them. God is God. He knows what he is doing. When you can't trace his hand, trust his heart." This really helped me when I would start feeling sorry for myself. It always redirected my focus on moving forward with God and letting go. The last is from Corrie Ten Boom. Such a godly woman, full of faith despite her circumstances. She says, "When the train goes through a tunnel and the world gets dark, do you jump out? Of course not. You sit still and trust the engineer to get you through." Grief is like a dark tunnel and I have been through it. I praise you God for being my strong tower, my refuge, and my light at the end of the tunnel.

Today I honor my Dad for the love he gave and the life he lived.





And of course I honor my husband who has proven to be a wonderful Dad. He was so scared about becoming a Dad. He just was never much of a kid person and was terrified he wouldn't know what to do. Well, from day one he has been a very hands on Daddy. From coaching me in the delivery room to changing his first poopy diaper. He was really nervous about my return to work but he handled Tobey so well. I remember my first night back at work. Rodney was nervous and I must admit I was too. When I arrived home the next morning, I walked into the bedroom and Tobey was cuddled up next to his Daddy on the bed. He had woken up wanting his Mommy and fell asleep next to Daddy. It was the sweetest thing. I was so relieved they survived their first night alone and they have survived many others since. Now our boy is almost two and he looooves his Daddy. So honey I honor you as the father of our son. Thank you for being a man of integrity and a man our son can look up to.





And I also want to honor my Father-in-Law. He is the reason my husband is a man of integrity. He has such a servant's heart and he is such a godly man. I am so proud for Tobey that he has such a great Paw Paw and such a wonderful role model. And I am thankful and proud that he is my "Dad" too. Without him, Father's day would be much more difficult.


Happy Father's Day!