POP
I had an “aha” moment yesterday. I was thinking about how cute it was that the initials of Pearls of Promise spelled “POP.” It makes it easy to shorten the name, Pearls of Promise, when you’re tweeting about the ministry on Twitter. However, I had never focused on the fact that “POP” is also slang for “daddy” or “father.”
When this occurred to me, it confirmed the name, “Pearls of Promise,” is God ordained! As Jennifer Lopez used to say on American Idol, I got “goosies!”
You see, because my own father died before I was born, I have never known another father other than God. The other two women involved in this ministry, Lisa Mick and Catherine Weiskopf, were either rejected or abandoned by their biological fathers. We have often said, our fatherless past is one of the ties we have with each other and we know at some point we will write about it.
So “POP” has great significance. This ministry is a result of the love we have for our father in heaven and we do the work because we want to share the love our “POP” has given to us.
God desires to be a father to all, but he has a special place in his heart for those who have missed out on a relationship with their earthly father. In Psalm 68:5, it says, A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.
When I look back, I see the hand of the father all over my life, even before I knew him personally. He issued holy discipline when I ventured in the wrong direction and provided loving family members to fill in the void left by my earthly father. He has been my counselor, has shown me love in countless ways and restored my life through the saving power of his Son Jesus Christ.
He’s the best POP a girl could ever have.
What about you? Did you miss out on a healthy father relationship growing up? Do you long for a dad?
It doesn’t matter how old you are. God wants that role in your life. All you have to do is be willing to turn your life over to him. 1John 1:12 assures us: Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—
Go ahead. Take your first steps! POP is waiting for you with open arms.
Lisa Burkhardt Worley