Family Tradition

~Bocephus~

1Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know bus, because it did not know Him. 2Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
1 John 3: 1 -2 NKJV

I remember growing up in Virginia, a small town on Minnesotas Iron Range.  While my memories of these years are few, I do recall that my fathers youngest son carried with him somewhat of a celebrity status.  See, my father worked as a county deputy sheriff while I was growing up.  The people of this small town, for good or bad, knew my father.  Whether they had interacions with dad in the course of his job or outside of it, there were plenty of people in town who had formed their own opinions of my father.  I can recall a few instances where my mischief had gotten me into a spot, but the targets of my behavior chose to watch me walk away rather than deal with my father.  It was not until I was older that I understood just why they would do such a thing.  Back then I attributed it to my good fortune and nothing else.  There must have been something about my father that the people of my hometown realized that I didn't at the time.  Later on I became privy as to how alchohol had consumed my fathers life and ultimately led to his downfall and the breakup of his marriage.  Of course, my father was only following in the footsteps of his own father and his brothers who also suffered from alchoholism.  Unfortunately, this was his family tradition.  Fortunately, it hasn't been my own.  The point I raise here is that others judged me due to my own fathers actions.  Be it good or bad, I was my fathers son.  This was my identity, I did not choose it but I lived it.

Country music singers, have always been a real close family
But lately some of my kinfolk, have disowned a few of us and me
I guess it's because, I kinda changed my direction
Lord I guess I went and broke their FAMILY TRADITION.
~Family Tradition - Hank Williams Junior~

These days I look upon myself with the tradition of another family.  The family I now belong to is not a earthly family but one where my Father is my Lord in heaven.  Of course, I now have many brothers and sisters as well.  I've related a few times in the past of a friend of ours who would often refer to God as Daddy.  Back then, such behavior was pretty new to me.  For calling God Daddy was somehow robbing Him of the glory He so rightly deserved.  However, as I thought about it, my friend wasn't too far off base in his description of His Lord.  This was also a part of the criticism of Paul Youngs book The Shack when it first arrived on the scene.  I recall my pastor at the time cautioning his flock against reading too much into this new book.  Why would he do this?  Every person I have talked to who has seen the big screen adaptation of the book came away a changed person.  why?  Because they became keenly aware of their heavenly Fathers...their Daddys love for them.  For in the face of his own  tragedy, the movies main character is once again drawn back to Daddys love.  For it is only here where he could find the healing he truly needed.  For me, I have a family tradition of pain and dissapointment.  However, as this flesh is not my true identity, so it is that my family tradition is now one where I am a child of God!  My family tradition is now one of love, forgiveness and grace.  My loving Daddy has again brought me back home to Him.

~Scott~