Dear Inner Circle,
More than half her lifetime ago in Melbourne an 8-year old girl looked up at me and asked, “Will you be my kind of like, daddy?” Immediately she blushed and looked away embarrassed. “What do you mean by that?” I gently enquired. “I don’t know. Just like call me up on my birthdays and pretend like you care?” In that moment, I realised that all questions are not created equal. She’s now in her mid-20s and I never miss a year. We keep in touch via phone calls, messages and visits, I have even dutifully stood in to meet each potential suitor. Her life is a testament to the power of love. Her aunt is an angel, taking her in and loving her on her worst days, like the day that her father looked her in the eye and said that he no longer wanted her in his life and the day she had to bury her mother. A full life is not a smooth life. The way of love is not an easy way. To be fully alive is to be up and to be down. A great life is to prove that real love makes a way, even where there seems to be no way.[vc_row columns_on_tablet=”keep” padding_top=”0″ padding_bottom=”0″][vc_column h_text_align=”left” h_text_align_mobile=”left” v_align=”v-align-middle” use_background=”” width=”1/1″][tm_image image_id=”1355″ link_image=”none” textarea_html_bkg_color=”#ffffff” caption_type=””][/tm_image][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row columns_on_tablet=”keep” padding_top=”50″ padding_bottom=”50″][vc_column h_text_align=”left” h_text_align_mobile=”left” v_align=”v-align-middle” use_background=”” width=”1/1″][tm_textblock textarea_html_bkg_color=”#ffffff”]
One of the funniest and most engaging young men I’ve ever met once said, “Never believe my smile” because behind it, all he really wanted to do was to “kill the b*st*rd that murdered my sister”. His life was one big plan in motion, he was going to wait till he was 18 so that he could do his time with satisfaction in an adult prison. Becoming a father changed his life in an instant. A helpless baby did what none of us could do. He let go of his vengeance and replaced it with a deep desire to live as a father, worthy of such a child.
Another promise was shared with me just yesterday from a man with more tattoos than skin. He told me of the time he first cradled his newborn baby girl in his arms. He was overwhelmed, and a tear made its way down his cheek past the two tears already tattooed on his face. He realised just how much he had missed of his other children’s lives. His life had been spent numbing pain with drugs, which always led to violence and inevitably ended up with him in prison. He was sick of the cycle. The moment he tenderly kissed her tiny unblemished cheek he whispered a promise into her ear saying that as she grew, he would not miss a single moment of it. Perhaps you’ve never pondered just how hard it is to “live straight” when for years all you can think about is hunting for your next dollar for the sake of your next purchase of drugs. I’ve heard many tell me how giving up drugs is easy compared to the task of knowing how to live and how to use time. It takes courage on a grand scale, but there is a two-year-old today who sees her dad every day.
At chapel on Sunday morning we were joined by a man who asked if he could play the harmonica on Father’s Day in honour of his children with whom he has lost contact. The soulful tune he played moved us as we remembered that whether it be with our parents or our children, any relationship cannot be taken for granted.
Thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Jon
Jon Owen
Pastor & CEO
Wayside Chapel
