The man God gave me as Father...

"Blessed" doesn't seem to fit the word I'm looking for. As a matter of fact, it might be a bit cliche. "Honored" sounds like I deserved him. But I don't. There really isn't a word that fits the description of my father's existence in my life. 

Before I get into the emotional stuff, I want to describe how I remember him as a child. I remember coming back from school and waiting for him to come home from work. As soon as he did, we would run to give him a hug, tackle him & wrestle with him {seems like we would always win but I think he just let us believe so}. We would take his white & blue lunchbox & clean it for him. Then we would sit him down and give him a full body massage. Natalie on his head and I would rub his feet. 

My father was a strict dad. But that doesn't mean we never had fun. He always had a trick up his sleeve. He was always an adventurous dad! {I think I get it from him}. He bought us our first bike & taught us to ride it. He taught us how to roller blade. He would walk with us to the park and take us to get some ice cream; drive us to different places and just be with us. He shared himself with us. 

When we got a little older {and quite frankly, a little more annoying} it took one look from my dad to put us in our place! I look back now and laugh at that because if I were him, I wouldn't be so patient with us!

My daddy was our superhero. 

It didn't matter how busy he was being a provider, pastor, counselor, teacher, husband & son, he was always our father. You don't really know how important a dad is until you look back once your older and see that  if it wasn't for him, you probably wouldn't have the life you do. I agree. 

When we became teens, he was always there to tell us that we look beautiful natural. But we didn't listen to him, we wanted to look like everyone else. He was patient {and sometimes very impatient} with us during our teen years. But always reminding us that the most important kind of beauty is the beauty of the heart. Our character. What we can do to serve those around us. How we can honor the elders at church. How we can serve God with our talents as young girls. That's what my daddy taught me. To be available to serve. To focus on ministry. To learn to worship, love, honor, and obey God. He didn't teach us all this by only his words but by example. 

When going through hard times in my life, my dad was always there for me. His love & compassion for me always reminded me of Jesus's ministry of reconciliation. He was always there to say, "I forgive you. Let me help you. Let's forget about this and learn. I'm here for you each and everytime you need me." And because of this, I wanted to learn to honor him. 

My dad is not perfect. We haven't always had the best relationship. What relationship is perfect anyways? Don't we all have our ups and downs? And because of all those downs we have learned to make our friendship stronger. We have learned together to respect and love each other always. Our relationship is growing. 

Each day, I love opening my laptop and hearing him; what he did, what he is doing, what his future plans are. I love being able to come to him for advice. I love knowing that he is praying for me and supporting me. 

My dad has taught us the power of words. How they can affect our lives. His blessing for me has always been, "Rama Fructifera" {fruitful vine}. He means it as in grandkids but unfortunately for him, all three of us are still single! But spiritually, that blessing is powerful in my life. I have been blessed with living in Taiwan and have had the honor of being with about 500 Taiwanese children that I get to minister, love and teach every week. What a powerful blessing! 

Looking back in time, hearing his testimony of how God spared his life in his youth and how God has been leading him to expand God's kingdom and how God has given him special gifts to do just that- encourages me to trust the God of my father. 

I pray that one day my grandfathers, will also serve the God of wisdom. That is my one prayer for both my grandfathers.  

So, dad, having you in my life is an essential thing. Having you in my life has made a world of a difference in my formation. I am who I am now because of all the work you had to put into this relationship. I am healthy now because of fulfilling your job as provider. I am successful now because of your guidance, patience, love, nurturing, and prayer. 

Thank you for all the times of discipline. Thank you for all the times of laughter. Thank you for all the times you cried with me and for me. Thank you for your hugs and for your time. Thank you for not leaving me and for existing in my life. Thank you for choosing to love me when I didn't deserve it. Thank you for being my daddy. 

Words cannot describe the gratitude I have in my heart for your life. Everyday you should be reminded all this. But today specially, I want to remind you that:

I love you unconditonally, sincerely, forever.
父亲节快乐 {Fùqīn jié kuàilè}

Psalms 127:3-5 - "Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court."(NIV)