A life maybe wasted

[deadon]

My dad flew the coop when I was two years old. I looked for father figures for over 50 years, found some good and some not so good. One day I was sitting in the woods and don't get me wrong, God has never talked to me like to some others, but all of a sudden at 59 yrs old ,this warm feeling came over me and I felt like someone was saying to me, I'll be your daddy, I'll go hunting and fishing with you.

[huntingmike]

Apr 30, 2010 19:32:05 GMT -5 deadon said:

My dad flew the coop when I was two years old. I looked for father figures for over 50 years, found some good and some not so good. One day I was sitting in the woods and don't get me wrong, God has never talked to me like to some others, but all of a sudden at 59 yrs old ,this warm feeling came over me and I felt like someone was saying to me, I'll be your daddy, I'll go hunting and fishing with you.

It may have taken you a while to figure things out but your life is from this day forward and not wasted.

God is the Father that all fathers should try to give all the Glory to.
My father while alive always pointed me to the Heavenly Father who made his life complete.
Every where I go I am never alone and I mean it . I have been to many countries and where ever I go I feel his presence. When I am in the woods hunting He is there. I am glad He is always with me. ;D

[dougedwards]

Just as the first Adam was incomplete as a man so were are own fathers. And if we could be really honest with ourselves we could realize that neither have we been the best of fathers to our children.

The felt emotional pain inflicted by our parents, no matter how unintentional, tends to manifest itself in strange ways into our adult years. There is a book called "Wild At Heart" by John Elderidge that vividly describes "the wound" that all men carry that was inflicted by their own father.

God does speak to us as THE FATHER. A Father who loves us so much that while we were in our rebellion against him, this Father willingly sacrificed His own Beloved Son so that we can be reconciled to Him for ever and ever.

Fellow Virginian.......what you heard was the voice of love. Embrace it and enjoy Him forever.

Doug

[ET]

Deadon

I can appreciate what you are feeling and know what you are saying.
My physical father was never really attached to his Children and had his focus on his own life with friends and alcohol. So we kids often had to fend for ourselves to learn about life as we grew up. There even came a time in my late teens and early 20’s where I became rebellious and set out in my own direction with the attitude I will grow up on my own.
Okay I survived that part but not totally unscathed with hard lessons learned.

Never really having a father son bond relationship in my life many a time I never even considered having a father at all. The closest feeling of a father happened in my late 20’s when I found a great friend (10-years older) who taught me about the outdoors, hunting, fishing, canoeing, etc. This was a gap filled in my life but he also has a life of his own to live with his family. Not to make this a long post I’ll keep a little of my history back from here.

Now feeling God’s presence in the wild that is away from many day to day distraction is amazing. The peace, calmness and a feeling of not being alone is an incredible experience I often look forward too.

As for considering our lives being wasted I don’t consider mine wasted at all. If anything I am grateful to God for guiding my life where it is today without the help of a physical father. As for my physical father who was never really there for me and is now gone I have also come to peace with that. I forgave him and no longer really carry any thoughts about his behavior or what he deprived me of. So I’m at peace with this part of my life.


Ed

[ozark]

My childhood was different. My Father was always my friend, hunting and fishing partner. We worked together as a team cutting timber, and in other work. He wasn't demanding and more of a buddy than an authority figure. Then, my older brother needed someone to go with him into the woods and along the streams doing everything from bee tree hunting to digging gensing. I guess that I had more than enough to appreciate even though we were somewhere between real poor and just poor. We always had something to eat but not always something I liked best. lol.

[ozark]

ET, your post uncovered a important but not well understood secret to peace of mind and happiness. We all have people who ill treat us, make critical remarks about us, or otherwise mistreat us. It can eat on us and destroy our own happiness even when we are guiltless. We have to forgive them to get peace of mind and put the incident behind us. I try to forgive those who hurts me with words or deeds. To hold a grudge or to try to get even bothers me. Years ago I concluded that I must either kill them or forgive them. So far I haven't had to shoot anyone. Naturally, if I happened upon someone molesting a child then I couldn't hardly elect to forgive them. WOW, that would be a hard one for me. I love little children and could become dangerous.

[deadon]

ET,God must have loved the country because he made soooooo much of it. I feel closer to him sitting in the woods than I ever did in church.

[sw]

:)What a thread! I identify with many of you. I felt my father didn't love me. I couldn't measure up to the desired perfection. I tried, and in many ways did, conquer the world(college degrees, flying Ftrs in the USAF, etc) to win his approval. Though he is deceased, I think I always had his love but just didn't know it. He didn't know how to show it. For much of my life, I just wanted approval, not more rejection. I think there are more of us with such backgrounds than most of us realize. I'll get that book - sounds interesting.

PS We need to let our grown offspring know just how much we appreciate them. I don't think Tar 12's kids will have this problem .