I was blessed with a good father. He was a gentle man, and a gentleman. He helped establish in me an awesome and fearful respect for the truly good Father we all have access to in Christ Jesus.

I only had my dad until I was 33, but in that time there are countless memories, happy and sad. One of the memories I've chosen to recall for this post is from a simple walk with my father one day when I was very young, the other from when he was paralyzed from the chest down with cancer, and could walk no longer.

On the walk, dad and I were talking about what it meant to "fear God." He led me to know that while, because we have Jesus we don't have to fear about what will happen to us eternally, that our awesome Heavenly Father deserves all fearful respect with our love.

It always amazes me to hear those folks who say they're going to have a few questions for God when they get to Heaven. They might, but they aren't going to ask them. For one thing, any questions they might still have when they get to Heaven will be answered in His time, when He sees fit. For another thing, they are going be so in awe and in such amazement that they will be on their faces before Him that they aren't going to be thinking about their little "questions." (Laughing here)

My dad became paralyzed the day before Father's day in June, 1991, from a returning inoperable tumor that was pressing against his spinal cord. I had rented a movie for him that with all of the visiting family he hadn't had time to watch. I found out he was paralyzed when I went to the house to pick it up after work.

We didn't know what to expect at that point as Dad had turned 80 that April and we were getting slightly vague (I felt) diagnostic details from his GP and his surgeon. The truth is, I was praying daily that God's will would be done with my dad's life, but I was in constant denial that he was leaving us and with my mother and the rest of my family, trying to will him to survive.

The months progressed and I was heading over to the folk's house each morning before work to help Mom move Dad into the living room and after work each night to help her move him back into their bedroom. This period of my life, even though I was working 70 hours per week was a joy, mixed with a kind of regretful gratitude, that I could be of some service finally to my parents. I say regretful, because it had to be under those circumstances.

During those months, Dad and I had more opportunities to talk about things than we had at any other period in our lives. We had some deep conversations about God and life in general. I enjoyed that so much that it's difficult to express.

One day, during those months, as I was keeping company with Dad, I was goofing around, sitting in his wheelchair. I would tilt it back, balancing on the rear wheels with the front wheels off the floor. He just said, "I love you Dave. You have a lot of fine qualities." In complete honesty, I don't really know what he was talking about. I mean, I'm a loving guy, nice enough I guess. But I was quietly in shock. Having him say that to me meant so much, and of course, it is all about me right? (Laughing here)

My dad had flaws. Few they were in my adoring opinion, but he had them nonetheless. Our Heavenly Father has no flaws, and when He tells me in His different ways that He loves me, I am often still in quiet shock. I sometimes can't quite believe it and then He takes steps to show me, again and again that what He is telling me is not only true, but penetratingly real and eternal.

I talked with one of my sisters today about how short the time we had with Dad seemed looking back, and she remarked that their are those who never know their earthly parents but that are just as blessed to know their Heavenly Father, and wasn't that a wonderful thing?

It's a precious thing to say goodbye to someone you love that is leaving this world, made even more precious by the consoling knowledge that you will see them again when they have Jesus in their hearts. I've said goodbye to friends and to family that have known and loved Jesus and goodbye as well as to those who have gone to their eternities in complete denial and rejection of Him.

I have the first group of people's memories on one hand to bolster me up and to look forward to seeing them again. I have the second group of people's memories to remind me that time is so short. I don't want to let any of them pass through my life without telling them that they can have a true Father, for whom nothing in their lives is beyond repair and Who loves them unconditionally.

I don't want to miss telling any more of them that if they will only turn to Him for His gracious forgiveness that they can know and constantly be reminded and have confirmed daily that the Father, the Maker and Master of all loves them and wants them to be with Him forever.

I want to let them know that it will lovingly become, all about Him and that every day in Heaven is Father's Day, and everyone there lives to celebrate it because there is no one who deserves it as He does. Happy Father's Day.