Yesterday and Today.

"We shouldn't look down and lose hope if we grow up without the blessing. We should look up instead to the incredible provision of a blessing that can leave our lives overflowing." -Gary Smalley & John Trent.

For years she had been searching for her fathers acceptance and approval. They always seemed out of reach. Words of love and encouragement were few and far between. Her father put up the tough exterior. Because of that it had been hard for her to love another; a part of her didn't believe another person could really love her. She never understood why he acted the way he did. Luckily she got some insight when she seeked professional help. In spite of her father, his attitude towards her was different from the way he treated her younger sister. She felt like a burden. The slightest annoying thing she did brought an explosion of anger. Bitterness and resentment began to replace genuine affection. Heartache and loneliness that she was feeling is an echo of her fathers unhappiness - from his childhood.
The absence of parental acceptance has serious consequences. The lack of Blessing is a major reason why it is so hard for her to love another and completely trust, giving them the benefit of the doubt. It's hard for her to become genuinely committed - it takes longer. The inability to feel acceptable as a person has slowly destroyed or distanced her from her most important relationships. She is searching for her family's blessing. She's moved physically but remains chained emotionally. It's taken root in her life. There was a time when she was in a state of severe depression - sometimes she hid it so well you would of never known. Until... She learned that her heavenly Father truly accepts her and that's all that mattered. And the lack of acceptance has set off a lifelong search.

"Bless me, even me also, O My Father."

You're supposed to hear words of encouragement, love, and acceptance from your parents. In a world awash with insecurity and in search of acceptance, we need biblical anchors to hold on to. She refused to accept a cure that is worse than the problem itself. God's Word and His principles do offer a changeless blueprint for constructing or reconstructing relationships. As a parent she does not want the past to repeat itself, she doesn't want her children to be deprived of the blessing. She said: "I will give it to them, they deserve it!" There was hope for ending the search for personal acceptance. As long as her heavenly Father was by her side, she knew she could not go undefeated. She was good enough - and would always be through His eyes. Her earthly father was now replaced by her heavenly one. What a blessing that is! She could finally smile again, taking it one day at a time. "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." (John 14:27)