Hearing the Father Sing – Longing for it

“I’m not certain I’m loved by God!” Recently 2 people shared with me a podcast from the well-know Christian pastor, speaker, and writer Francis Chan, where he openly revealed his heart. In the podcast (see link below) he disclosed that there was a season right before he turned 50 years old that he wondered if he was truly love by God.

Francis Chan was facing doubts and fears that the Father in heaven didn’t fully love him. Perhaps it came out of a rough childhood where he experienced incredible loss and rejection or even some of the teaching he received at school which led him to battle with knowing he was fully loved.

He felt prompted by the Spirit to share this wondering first with his wife and  later with his ministry team on his 50th birthday. He specifically asked for prayer so that he would know for certain the Father love. What a gift to his family and friends promising to cover him by prayer and fasting for the next year that he would be overwhelmed by such love. He expressed  how such prayers were the greatest of all birthday gifts.

Answered prayers. An overwhelming love. In Francis Chan’s 50th year of life he experienced a Father’s love beyond comprehension.  The words from Zephaniah 3:17 came alive to him. He knew without a doubt that His Heavenly Father “delights in him and rejoices over him with singing!” 

It is a powerful podcast and I hope you can take time to listen. It highlights some of what we have been looking at in the last few blogs. And in the midst of the recent tragic killings it is evident our world desperately needs to know the Father’s love more than ever before.

When we miss out on His love song and replace it with the lies of the enemy that bombard us at every turn we are left empty and hopeless. The more we try to fill the void and find our own love song the more desperate we become. This is when loneliness, self hate, self pity, anger, and destruction begins to grow like a repugnant weed.

I am thankful to Francis Chan for his honesty and for his courage to tell others of his struggle. This is the work of the Holy Spirit. It such an amazing gift of grace when our spiritual ears and eyes encounter a singing God. Embracing our emptiness AND understanding that even good things such as ministry, simply are unable to heal the void within our heart.

The Spirit puts a desire in our hearts to long to hear the love song of heaven in the very core of our souls. Francis asks his team to join him as he prays to know the Father’s love authentically singing over him. Prayer is a gift given to us, an open door for us to walk into the Father’s house and join this amazing celebration of love.

I’m sure if we are all honest there are times and seasons where we too wonder about the Father’s love for us. Where we are not 100% sure if we are truly loved. Be honest about it, long for it in prayer and even ask others to pray that His love would be made known to you.

Jesus left these words for His disciples and for us the night before He went to the cross. Such words challenge us to keep asking and longing to know the Father’s love through the Son’s work on that cross:

“Until now you’ve not been bold enough to ask the Father for a single thing in My name, but now you can ask, and keep on asking Him! And you can be sure that you’ll receive what you ask for, and your joy will have no limits! (Jn. 16:24).

Podcast on youtube – (https://youtu.be/P5GD9FTSCFQ)