Let’s face it. Most of us know deep down that our spiritual life isn’t what it should be. Even many of us who believe the gospel sense an uneasy distance between us and God the Father. Truth be told, we believe He loves everyone else, but secretly think He’s just putting up with us. We hold back, hedge our bets, settle for life at arm’s length from Him. Why?

     For some of us the answer lies in less-than-perfect earthly fathers. We have “papa perception problems,” seeing the Heavenly Father through the lens of experience with earthly fathers:

     What do these women and girls have in common? They are caught in prisons of false perception which keep them from moving toward the only perfect Father any of us ever gets.  

     Thankfully, God is not limited by our experience. His love breaks through the thickest of walls and heals the deepest of wounds. Whatever our history with earthly fathers, however we have experienced the pain of fatherlessness, God has not left us as spiritual orphans. The love and acceptance He offers us is the real deal, powerful enough to free our hearts from the habit of hiding and the folly of fear.