Growing up without my natural father left me feeling hopeless, empty, scared, and extremely confused. I didn't know who I was, who I belonged to, or what I wanted to do with my life. I knew that my name was Leola, that I was a female...the sixth child of Gladys and Charles Law and that my life was totally sad.
November 10, 1983, marked a day of change in not just my life, but the life of my entire family. My father, Rev. Charles Law was killed in a car wreck on the way home from work..he was 30 years old. My family consisted of my mother Gladys, my older brother Dorland 13, and my sisters Dodie 12, Meme 11, Tinka 9, Christie 7, and myself 5. My mother was also 5 months pregnant...with twins.
I was always told that I was "his baby" and that he really loved me...but my young mind, didn't retain that memory. And so I spent years mourning his death, years living in rebellion, years angry with the world, him...and God. Years wondering WHY, why the "good daddy", why our family, why me, why us...why the struggle, the hurt, the pain.
And then I found the why not. One day about seven years ago, during a financial hardship, I needed a bill paid immediately!! I was in school, my husband was working long hours...but money just didn't add up. I've always believed in tithing and giving in offering no matter what...but money just didn't add up! And so, I begin to cry...because even after all these years I still find that you have moments that you just need daddy's advice..and he's not here. And so, I begin to cry, and I said "Lord, I need to talk to you as a daddy...I need to have that moment. I feel that if my daddy were here I'd be able to come to him with this, but since he isn't, I'm coming to you." And so I crawled into the Father's lap, laid my head on his shoulder....and told him everything. Well, the next day I went to the mailbox and there was a check for me....it paid my bill and I still had some left over. I called my mother crying, happy, laughing "mama, mama, my daddy pays child support" she thought I was NUTS!!!
At that moment I realized that God has always looked at me as a daughter...I just needed to wake up and see him as my Father. He has always been there loving me, caring for me, guiding and nurturing me as a father...I just needed to wake up and see it for myself. And so, I begin to search the scriptures to see how God felt about the fatherless...and I realized that He has a special love for us! We are not without a father, we have the BEST Father not in the world, but the actual creature of the world as our dad! Jesus told us in Matthew 7:11 "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?" We must learn to go to Him, not just as our God, but as our Father...and pour our hearts out to Him, just as we would in the natural. I did and that scared, confused, angry, hopeless, empty, lost little girl that I once was...is no more. Why, b/c I've climbed into the lap of my Daddy and allowed Him to love me to life!
All we have to do as His children is #1 realize that we now belong to him (Exodus 22:22-24), #2 believe what Jesus said to us in Matthew 7:11, and #3 walk in our "call" as Daddy's Girls.
November 10, 1983, marked a day of change in not just my life, but the life of my entire family. My father, Rev. Charles Law was killed in a car wreck on the way home from work..he was 30 years old. My family consisted of my mother Gladys, my older brother Dorland 13, and my sisters Dodie 12, Meme 11, Tinka 9, Christie 7, and myself 5. My mother was also 5 months pregnant...with twins.
I was always told that I was "his baby" and that he really loved me...but my young mind, didn't retain that memory. And so I spent years mourning his death, years living in rebellion, years angry with the world, him...and God. Years wondering WHY, why the "good daddy", why our family, why me, why us...why the struggle, the hurt, the pain.
And then I found the why not. One day about seven years ago, during a financial hardship, I needed a bill paid immediately!! I was in school, my husband was working long hours...but money just didn't add up. I've always believed in tithing and giving in offering no matter what...but money just didn't add up! And so, I begin to cry...because even after all these years I still find that you have moments that you just need daddy's advice..and he's not here. And so, I begin to cry, and I said "Lord, I need to talk to you as a daddy...I need to have that moment. I feel that if my daddy were here I'd be able to come to him with this, but since he isn't, I'm coming to you." And so I crawled into the Father's lap, laid my head on his shoulder....and told him everything. Well, the next day I went to the mailbox and there was a check for me....it paid my bill and I still had some left over. I called my mother crying, happy, laughing "mama, mama, my daddy pays child support" she thought I was NUTS!!!
At that moment I realized that God has always looked at me as a daughter...I just needed to wake up and see him as my Father. He has always been there loving me, caring for me, guiding and nurturing me as a father...I just needed to wake up and see it for myself. And so, I begin to search the scriptures to see how God felt about the fatherless...and I realized that He has a special love for us! We are not without a father, we have the BEST Father not in the world, but the actual creature of the world as our dad! Jesus told us in Matthew 7:11 "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?" We must learn to go to Him, not just as our God, but as our Father...and pour our hearts out to Him, just as we would in the natural. I did and that scared, confused, angry, hopeless, empty, lost little girl that I once was...is no more. Why, b/c I've climbed into the lap of my Daddy and allowed Him to love me to life!
All we have to do as His children is #1 realize that we now belong to him (Exodus 22:22-24), #2 believe what Jesus said to us in Matthew 7:11, and #3 walk in our "call" as Daddy's Girls.
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