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John 14:6 Helps
Son Heal After Fathers' Death
This past weekend provided
me with a new insight into God's plan.
I was asked to do a
memorial service for a man who attended our church.
I did not realize the impact this ceremony would have on my life and the
lives of the people attending the service.
After meeting with the
family, it became apparent to me that I had more in common with this man than I
knew. We are both the stepfather of six children.
Both of us worked a program of recovery.
We each have a son who we abandoned as we worked toward our own
selfishness and self-centeredness. I
knew this man’s young son would be present at the service, and I wanted to
touch him in some way to let him know that his father had succeeded in changing
his life.
As I prepared my notes, I
planned to use the book of John and the verse John 14:6 in my service.
I read it again as I have so many times. Somehow this time the meaning was amplified to me.
Jesus answered, “I am
the way and the truth and the life. No
one comes to the Father except through me.”
I had no way of knowing if this young man knew Christ, but I knew his
father did. I decided to go through
Christ to bring this young man to his earthly father and then to his Heavenly
Father.
While performing the
service, these words slipped out of my mouth:
“Remember him for who he had become, now what he was.”
I paused, and watched a young man, one who never knew his father until a
stranger shared something about the man, fall apart.
The six stepchildren and
biological son reminded me of the believers sharing their possessions in Acts
4:32: All the believers were one in heart and mind.
No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared
everything they had. Six children sharing with a son healed a torn relationship
strained by years of addiction.
The son approached me
later and indicated to me that he would like to talk in private.
I knew this was going to be one of the most enlightening experiences of
my life.
The story that was told to
me was one I have heard many times. Somehow,
this one had a different feeling to it. This
young man shared with me that he had turned out just like his father.
The realization that he wasn’t proud of his dad or himself was
devastating to him. The son shared
that he had been able to turn his life around just about the same time that his
father did. For the past year, in
different parts of the state, each was doing what God wanted him to do:
repairing relationships, committing his life to Christ and asking, for a daily
reprieve from his addiction.
This I thought was enough
considering the circumstances, but God always saves the best for last, it is
called a miracle.
The son asked me if his
father had been a good father to these six children.
I assured him that he was. I
could see the tears begin to develop in his eyes, the urgency to fight them
back. His nose began to sniffle and his throat was dry as he spoke
these simple words: “I’m glad
he found a family, someone he could love.”
This statement opened the
door for healing and forgiveness. His
struggle was over just like his father’s.
Today, they are free because John the apostle, wrote the book of John for
new Christians and non-Christians to prove that Jesus is the Son of God.
John 14:6 is a powerful
verse that to some, without clarification, can seem overwhelming to anyone. All we have to do is have faith and the process becomes
available for our struggles to disappear as they flow through Christ and on to
His Father.
Saturday, July 18, 1998
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