I'm reminded of a time when I was a teenager living in my parents home in large town called Hamilton, a suburb of Trenton, NJ. New Jersey is in the Northeastern Region part of North America. The beauty of living in my state is that we have four seasons: Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall. May I add that my favorite season is Fall.☺️ I make no apology for that.lol...I recall having a conversation with my Dad about things that I wanted to do in the near future concerning colleges that I wanted to attend, things I wanted to purchase, and vacations that I wanted to take before I went away to school and live what I thought to be my best life, from the perspective of a 16-year-old; and my father looked at me & said, "Life is not a bowl of cherries Tamika & money don't grow on trees." He said, you have a filet mignon appetite on a cheeseburger budget.🤭 (I use to work at McDonald's so I thought that was so hilarious, even though I was usually scheduled to work the Drive-thru. So the only thing I really made was the Drinks & the French Fry Station)...And I thought about it & I said, "Why can't I have it all?" The reality is that it's not that my dad didn't want me to have these luxuries, but he wanted me to know that it wasn't going to come easy. He added, "You have to put in the time." I knew I was loved.(That's my dad's love for me.)...I began to pray and talk to my Heavenly Father & he told me that if I delite myself in Lord he will give me the desires of my heart.(Psalms 37:4) Isn't that just like the Father's Love. This brought so much joy to my heart when I read it this scripture this morning. As I draw close to him, he draws nigh to me. I love the way the Amplified Study Translation says, "But I have trusted and relied on and been confident in Your lovingkindness and faithfulness; My heart shall rejoice and delight in Your salvation. Psalms 13:5 AMP
Though my dad is no longer here with us, I hold dear to my heart all the memories and all the conversations that we shared. He was such a great father. I had the perfect example of what unconditional love feels like from my earthly father, however nothing compares to God's love for us. 🩵Minister Tamika
