Day 54

 

Daddy

 

For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father."

 

Romans 8:15

 

 

My son has always been the curious sort. He likes to know why people do certain things and how things work. When he was 4 years old he liked doing science experiments (he grew out of it by the time he could get school credit for it). Being just a little kid his science experiments were sometimes just playing in water but at other times it was real science.

 

One night he said he wanted to show me a science experiment with eggs. He had evidently heard something on TV about how eggs would sink in regular water and float in salt water. So, we proceeded with the experiment.

 

We put an egg in a clear glass of water and it sank, just like it was supposed to. Then we got a glass of warm salty water. (The warmth helps the salt dissolve I think). When we got the water good and salty we dropped an egg in it and sure enough it floated.

 

I was clueless as to why this happened so my wife explained this to me and Ethan. Evidently the salt makes the water denser so that it actually becomes heavier than the egg, so the egg floats. My 4 year old understood this explanation but I had to take it by faith. We put the eggs up but not wanting to let things go to waste I decided to gargle the salt water. I'm told gargling with salt water is good for your gums (which is something else I take by faith).

 

To make water dense enough to float an egg it has to be very salty. So when I gargled with it I made a horrible face and spit it out and quickly rinsed my mouth out with fresh water.

 

My son thought my funny face and the spewing out of the salt water was hilarious. He started laughing and then paid me the ultimate compliment a father can get. He said, "Daddy, of all the daddies in the world, you're the daddiest." I'm not sure what it meant but I guarantee you I was sure proud to be it.

 

In the Bible several names are given God. The name used most often in the New Testament is "Father." In this day and time with so many dead beat, sorry, no account dads, to hear that God is our Father doesn't carry the impact it should. God is our Father and we are his children and the Bible tells us the relationship can be a close intimate one. Paul tells us we can call God, "Abba." "Abba" is Aramaic for "Daddy." It is the name Jesus used when he cried out in the Garden of Gethsemane the night before he was crucified. Loosely translated he said, "Daddy don't let this happen to me, but not what I want Dad, what you want."

 

God wants to be your dad. He wants to have a close personal relationship with you. He wants you to come to him and say, "Daddy, of all the daddies in the world, you're the daddiest."

 

Upon Further Review:

 

Read Galatians 4:6-7

 

• Because we are God's children what does he do?
• What is the difference between being God's slave and his son?
• What do we, as children, stand to inherit? And how do we inherit it?