THE BLOG I HOPE YOU DON’T RELATE TO/WHY A DAUGHTER NEEDS A DAD

 THE BLOG I HOPE YOU DON’T RELATE TO

I was browsing my Amazon account of books and came across this suggested one. Wow! Right before Father’s Day, it hits again. Father-hunger is what I call it. Maybe you grew up with a loving and kind father and this certainly won’t apply to you. You won’t relate to the eyes that tear up when you read the review, especially the poem.

“From the first time I held you, so perfect and new,

I promised to do everything that I could do

To help you become your most wonderful YOU,

My darling, my daughter, my girl.” (From WHY A DAUGHTER NEEDS A DAD)

Be still my heart! Are there really dads that say those things, think those things, DO those things for their daughters? Yes, I’m sure there are. My husband, Bill, has been a very good father, perhaps not poetic, but I know he’s tried to be a good dad. Maybe not perfect, but it’s not for lack of trying.

It’s hard for a generation who really didn’t have a godly father to look up to, to do it cold turkey. Mentors were scarce and some who were loved dearly fell off their pedestals in the course of leading others.

But back to my own Father-hunger. You’d think that a 70-year-old woman would have it together by now. Most of my young life was lived with the thought, ”Who needs a dad?” I could count on the fingers of one hand the men I trusted and still have some fingers left over. That’s a sad statement and I say it to my shame, but it really was my reality.

BUT FOR JESUS!

That Father-hunger was so real that it drew me to the altar at Flintstone Baptist Church in Chattanooga Valley as a young girl. I found my REAL FATHER there.

I’ve blogged before about something I call father hunger and the affect that can have on a young girl, especially. In looking over those blogs, I see that I still relate to those words. Sometimes I can go months or even years without the deep, soul-wrenching father hunger because of not growing up with my dad and then something will strike my heart. Hearing about someone whose memories were of laying upon their father’s chest as a child, remembering the feel of his scratchy beard, or a father admitting that he failed in the fathering department can bring me to tears. Because he knows he can’t go back and change the past concerning his lack in parenting, he decides instead to be the very best grandfather he can be. That’s an awesome thing to me.

As Father’s Day approaches, we know that although many of us did not have that true “father” experience while here on earth, the time in eternity together with the One True Father, Who Never Disappoints, will be a dream come true. And there will be no more father hunger for any of us who have experienced that pain.

It looks like this book is sold out right now. I don’t have to wonder why.

WHY A DAUGHTER NEEDS A DAD

A sweet picture book showcasing all the ways a father will help his daughter grow, this is the gift for every girl dad and little girl to celebrate their special bond. Featuring charming animal illustrations and heartwarming rhymes about the moments fathers and daughters share, Why a Daughter Needs a Dad is the perfect story to connect father and daughter together.

From the first time I held you, so perfect and new,

I promised to do everything that I could do

To help you become your most wonderful YOU,

My darling, my daughter, my girl.

For new dads, fathers-to-be, or for that perfect father-daughter moment, this sweet storybook celebrates how a father is always there for his little girl. reminding her to be artistic, thoughtful, honest, and smart, but most of all, true to herself.

https://www.amazon.com/.../ref=pd.../143-0342084-0972978...

2Regina Lee and Sandi Barthels Parish

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PRAYING FOR UNSPOKEN REQUESTS, TODAY

Quote of the day from Ann Voscamp: “No matter what they’re saying, everyone’s asking ‘Can you love me?’”

We pray on Friday, for the unspoken prayer requests among us. The deep longings, the things we only speak to God, because we know, He alone, understands and can help us.

From the book, Prayers for Prodigals by James Banks, are some beautiful quotes: “God shapes the world by prayer. Prayers are deathless. The lips that uttered them may be closed in death, the heart that felt them may have ceased to beat, but the prayers live before God, and God’s heart is set on them. Prayers outlive the lives of those who uttered them; outlive a generation, outlive an age, outlive a world.” E.M. Bounds

“Your prayers, dear child of God…shall be answered---some of them perhaps, during your lifetime on earth, all of them, certainly, during your lifetime in heaven.” Samuel Prime

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37wV6D49iEY&list=RDyYHT-TF4KO4&index=15

 “‘In that day,’ declares the LORD Almighty,

    ‘I will break the yoke off their necks

and will tear off their bonds;

    no longer will foreigners enslave them.

 Instead, they will serve the LORD their God…

“‘So do not be afraid, … my servant;

    do not be dismayed, Israel,’

declares the LORD.

‘I will surely save you out of a distant place,

    your descendants from the land of their exile.

Your children (Jacob) will again have peace and security,

    and no one will make them (him) afraid.

I am with you and will save you,’

    declares the LORD.”

Look up! I’ll save you out of faraway places,

    I’ll bring your children back from exile. (The Message)

Try At Lighthouse Point (Three Sisters Island) by Suzanne Woods Fisher for a great summer fiction vacation.

 

At Lighthouse Point (Three Sisters Island) by Suzanne Woods Fisher will keep your interest and is a great summer fiction vacation.

I didn’t read the other books in this series and will have to look them up. The family dynamics in the book remind me of the Baxter family stories by Karen Kingsbury. And yes, each family member in this story sure seems to see life differently and sometimes have a time communicating with each other. The dynamics of relationships between sisters is portrayed very well.

Family drama and disputes remind me of home, sometimes, but yet it was good to see some resolutions and family coming together at the end.

The island life seemed like a good place to get away from the real world. The possible romance kept you holding your breath and even older people had a chance to fall in love in this book.

 

 Although I received this book free of charge from Revell Reads in exchange for my honest review; I’d be happy to read any other books by this author.

DO WHAT YOU CAN LIVE WITH SHOULD BE AN AL-ANON SLOGAN!

 

From Linda Clare’s book, PRAYERS FOR PARENTS of PRODIGALS, this one prayer is worth the price of the book, and I think of it often. It helps me be more compassionate. “Help me remember, that you accept me just as I am and that, even if my prodigal is far away, squandering her life, you don’t reject her either. TO YOU, MY CHILD IS MUCH MORE THAN THE LAST BAD THING THEY DID.”

 

How many of us want to be remembered for the last bad thing we did? Or that horrible thing we did, years ago, that comes back to haunt us, when the enemy taunts us? We all have pasts and we all have regrets, I’d venture. Help me to not focus on the negative but on ANY small, positive thing I see.

 

Help me to see that everyone hurts. Some people because of OCD or anxiety overthink and have a hard time letting go of hurts done to them. It might seem minor or logical to me, but to them, as they dwell too long, it gets bigger and feels unforgiveable. As humans we just do the best we can, or as I like to say, try just to do the next best thing.

 

The other quote I feel especially for mothers is one I’m borrowing from a wise man in Al-anon. It’s not a slogan but I feel it should be. “DO WHAT YOU CAN LIVE WITH.” (John H.) That has gotten me through many a hard decision. Life continues to be hard on some levels and what I can live with willingly and kindly on some days I can’t on others. But that’s okay. I know the Lord can do in a minute what would take me years on my own. He is the God of the impossible. As in Luke 1:37 “Nothing is impossible with God.” The Passion Translation reads this way: “Not one promise from God is empty of power. Nothing is impossible with God!” He can tenderize the most hard-hearted person and make a complete change that is unbelievable, perhaps even unconceivable yet not for our God. I await that day.