If there is an enduring image I have of my dad, it’s him sitting at his desk in his study working. The location of the study may change as we moved house. I have memories of it from Devonport, Meadowbank, Epsom, to the present study at his home in St Heliers. But the desk, the bookshelves and indeed many of the books have all remained the same.
As a kid that desk was a treasure trove of paper and blue tac and neatly arranged pens. But I digress! The image I have is of my father and not the contents of the desk!
This was the place as a child, teenager and adult I came and still come for a listening ear, for wisdom and advice and maybe just a bit of a cry. The thing is, no matter the age I was or I am now, no matter how busy my Father is, he puts down what he is working on and listens. In all my years I have never been told to come back later because it wasn’t a good time or that I was interrupting something important (and most likely I was!). He has listened and counselled and handed over a clean pressed hanky should that be needed. In all my years as topics have changed from what’s important to me as a 8 year old to what’s important to me today, he has never belittled what I have had to share. And I have seen many people across the years take up the chair in his study and the same opportunity for a listening ear.
This enduring image is also a picture of our Father in Heaven. No matter what we think God may have on His plate and the triviality of what we think we are dealing with, God is always ready to listen and to counsel. What’s important to us is important to Him. God is ALWAYS there for us, always wanting to share in our days, always waiting for us to take up a chair and share.
As I write this my 3 year old has come up and asked me what I was doing, and then started chatting about his day. So with the example set before me, I have paused and taken time to listen to him.
Happy Father’s Day!
Blue Skies & Lollipops 