Latest / Our Community, Our Mission / Ep #226 – The Heavenly Father's Love

Transcript

Ep #226 – The Heavenly Father's Love · Our Community, Our Mission

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Gracious Father in heaven, we thank you for this day and this time.
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: Lord, thank you for our listeners, god, we pray that this encouraging word today would bless them.
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: And Lord, we just call them to action.
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Lord, in your holy, precious name, we pray Amen.
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: Hello everybody and welcome to Our Community, our Mission.
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: My name is Mike Schottel, I am the Director of Spiritual Wellness and Discipleship with the Topeka Rescue Mission and I just have a quick word to share with everyone.
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: A nice little story and a little bit of a devotional to go with it.
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: So I'm from Michigan, so us being in Kansas, if you're here in Kansas or live anywhere in the tornado belt, you know don't take me out and shoot me, but you know this is the first time that I ever saw a tornado where I witnessed or remembered that I did so.
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: I was eight years old when I witnessed my first tornado.
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: It was a wednesday night on july 28th 1999.
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: This particular night there was a church event at the hockey arena in my hometown of port here on mich that drew in some large crowds.
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: So it was for kids between the ages of eight and 12 and for their parents.
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: So, obviously, living in a hockey town and loving to ice skate.
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: My dad went with my older brother and me.
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: It was a beautiful night when we arrived at the arena.
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: We skated for about two hours and after everyone in the church rounded up to leave to go outside, I knew that something was off.
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: The sky was a dark black with a hint of green.
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: As we filed onto the bus to head back to the church, I felt my dad's hand firmly pressed on my shoulder as he led me onto the bus, and I could hear him whispering under his breath Dear God, not now.
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: Get us back safe, lord, something was terribly wrong.
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: Now, out here in Kansas, when I say that the sky was black with a hint of green, we all know what that means that's a tornado.
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: Eight years old looked up in the sky and I saw the funnel cloud.
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: My eight-year-old self terrifyingly asked my dad Dad, is that a tornado?
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: And he calmly said yes, but it's okay, don't worry, we're going to get back to church and we'll take cover.
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: Michael, please do not worry.
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: When we arrived back at the church, one of the pastors came out and made a gesture of what some kids thought on the bus was a call out for a home run, but then he shouted tornado touchdown.
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: Everyone inside now and take cover.
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: My dad rushed my brother and me into the foyer and got us down on the floor against the wall and told us to get into the cover position.
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: I started to cry because I thought we were going to die, but my dad quietly whispered in my ear Michael, this building is made of brick.
• 2:59
  Speaker 1: The Lord is going to protect us.
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: We're going to be fine.
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: Then the power went out.
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: Kids were crying, parents were shouting, trying to find their children and all I remember was my dad's voice praying for the safety of the church, the families looking for their children and for my mom and sister, who were located in a different part of the church.
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: After he prayed, I felt the weight of his body over mine and over my brother.
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: I cried out Dad, what are you doing?
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: You need to cover yourself, you need to protect yourself.
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: And he calmly replied I am protecting myself because I'm protecting you.
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: You're all that matters.
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: I need you to be safe.
• 3:57
  Speaker 1: I can gladly say nothing happened that night with the tornado.
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: It didn't come near the church.
• 4:01
  Speaker 1: We were all fine in the church taking cover, and the damage was caused elsewhere in port huron wasn't really anything to write home about.
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: However, the fear, the terror and the uncertainty sure was real in the moment.
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: Those words my dad said to me shook me to my core when I was a kid, and now that I have a child of my own, those same words shake me even more.
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: How true is it that, as a parent whether physically, emotionally or spiritually, that we would do whatever it takes to protect our child, even if that meant for us to lose our life?
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: Here's the kicker the love my earthly father has for me doesn't even hold a candle to the love my heavenly father has for me.
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: As I was reading through scripture, I came across Isaiah, chapter 38, verses 16 through 17.
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: The second part of verse 16, it starts you restored me to health and let me live.
• 5:14
  Speaker 1: Surely it was for my benefit that I suffered such anguish.
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: In your love, you kept me from the pit of destruction.
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: You have put all my sins behind your back.
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: King Hezekiah faced death due to a serious illness.
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: King Hezekiah faced death due to a serious illness, and yet he wrote this letter in Isaiah 38 in gratitude to God for delivering him from death.
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: The way this passage personifies the love of God is so great.
• 5:48
  Speaker 1: I don't want anyone to miss how beautiful it is.
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: By our love and trust in the Lord, he sets aside all things and delivers us from destruction, from death.
• 6:02
  Speaker 1: What does it look like when God has put all our sins behind his back?
• 6:06
  Speaker 1: It looks like he is close, so close it's almost like he's covering us with his arms.
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: He's protecting us.
• 6:15
  Speaker 1: Psalm 91.4 says he will cover you with his pinions and under his wings you may take refuge.
• 6:22
  Speaker 1: His faithfulness is a shield and a wall.
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: Blessed are they who seek and find shelter in the Lord.
• 6:32
  Speaker 1: Who seek and find shelter in the Lord.
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: If we position ourselves so close to him that he blocks all the evil, then what is there left to fear?
• 6:42
  Speaker 1: Just like the comfort I had from my earthly father protecting me, I have an even greater comfort knowing that my heavenly father is protecting me even more.
• 6:53
  Speaker 1: I say all of this the story of my dad and the passages I just shared to point out something so good and pure that there should be no hesitation in our mind of the love our Heavenly Father has for us.
• 7:12
  Speaker 1: I know there are some who do not have an earthly father like mine, but one thing we do have in common is a heavenly father who is even more crazy, in love with us.
• 7:22
  Speaker 1: Some of us here at TRM have fathers like mine who would do anything to protect their children.
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: Some of us have fathers who would put us in the line of danger so that they would be safe.
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: Some have fathers who they didn't even know because they abandoned them or passed away.
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: But rest assured, no matter what storm you might be facing right now, turn to your Heavenly Father, seek His shelter and be covered in His arms.
• 7:54
  Speaker 1: He is protecting you because he loves you.
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: He is protecting you because you matter to him.
• 8:04
  Speaker 1: As we navigate life's journey, I recognize that for some, the concept of a father may be challenging.
• 8:10
  Speaker 1: When reflecting on the role of a father, whether due to the absence of a father figure or a strained relationship, it often stirs up a range of emotions.
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: In these moments, it's crucial to remember that our Heavenly Father desires to be intimately involved in our lives.
• 8:30
  Speaker 1: He longs to shower us with His love and grace, offering a life filled with his blessings.
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: May you find solace in his presence, feeling the weight of his love, lifting your burdens and filling your heart with peace.
• 8:46
  Speaker 1: Friends, you are cherished and valued beyond measure.
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: Embrace this love and extend it to those around you, reflecting the love our heavenly father in all you do.
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: Thank you so much for listening.
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: If you have any questions, wanting to know more about this love of the father, please reach out to us either on Facebook or on our website, trmonlineorg.
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: Please like, share and subscribe to our podcast and just want to thank you for this time.
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: Y'all be blessed.