My father had a major influence on my life. Why might this be of interest to you?
      It may help you understand why some people have little joy when they hear the words, Our Heavenly Father. The word Father reminds them of their own father, who may have had a very negative influence on them.
      When my Dad became a Christian the men he worked with said, “It will never last.” Dad had been a drinking, swearing, quick to anger, steel mill worker. He was easy to get along with until someone managed to make him angry.
      When I was four, one day my father didn’t’ come home from work. I remember feeling sad. Where was he? Mother didn’t say anything and I expected that for sure Dad would be home the next day. He wasn’t. Two more days went by, and no Dad. The days stretched to a week and he still didn’t come home.
      Weeks stretched into a month and still no Dad. My hero was gone. Mother said she had no word from him and didn’t know where he was, or when he would be home. But one day he came home. I can still remember how happy I was. I can’t even imagine what it must be like for boys whose father left and never came back, or to have had a father they have never even seen.
      When I was thirteen my father had been dead for a year. A girl named Betty got angry with me and told me one day “Your Dad left you and then had to call my father and beg him for money so he could come home.”      I looked at Betty’s red hair and saw fire in my mind. “You no good (so and so) you don’t know what you are talking about.” “Ask your mother” she fired back.
     Mother said, “Yes, Betty is right, but that was before God changed your Dad.” That is the man I remember and love.

      To some people the word Father is a happy word. They may remember a loving, caring father. But many children have never known the love that God intended children to receive from their father. So when they hear the word Father they may “see fire”.
      A survey of one prison revealed that 9 out of 10 inmates had no happy memory of a father.
      At another prison a Christian group offered Mother’s Day cards for inmates to send their mother. On the day the cards were to be given out, nearly every man wanted a card he could mail to his mother.
      Later the same Christian group offered Father’s Day cards to the same inmates. Not one man requested a card! To those men the words “God the Father” had no happy meaning.
      Many children are being unclaimed or deserted by their fathers. The reasons for this are many but the fact is that when we say, “Our Father who art in Heaven” many men and women think of a father they believe does not love them.
      Some mothers feel abandoned or unwanted by the father of their child. Other mothers are glad their child’s father is not with them.
      Many unwanted or unloved children grow up feeling abandoned by God the Father. This makes it even more necessary for us to convince them that God loves them so much that He gave His only Son to help them.
      We have the challenge, and the opportunity, to convince people that God has revealed the love He has for us through Jesus. That is extremely important to accomplish. The more love we have for God the greater potential we have to convince others that He loves them.

Mary is taking a break from writing so this month we are reprinting her article from April, 2006.

     Jesus said, Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing (Luke 23:34). What a wonderful example Jesus set for us as He hung on the cross. We also are to forgive those who hurt us. We can't in our own strength, of course, but with the help of the Holy Spirit we can. In fact, one of the roles of the Holy Spirit in our lives is to be our Helper.
      The other day I was thinking of the Lord's Prayer where Jesus told us we must forgive others if we want God to also forgive us. “No problem” I said to myself as I thought of someone I have contact with regularly. This person dislikes me intensely and takes many opportunities to be rude. But I love them, so I have no problem forgiving them.
      As I thought about Jesus' words, I prayed, “Lord, show me my heart. Show me where I may need correction, so I can be more pleasing to You.” I never dreamed that I might be harboring any unforgiveness. Not me!
      That afternoon while driving down the road, not thinking about anything in particular, the Lord showed me that I did indeed harbor unforgiveness toward some¬one. Boy, was I surprised!
      This man had done nothing against me. Instead, he had deliberately tried to destroy the reputation of a committed Christian. On national television, no less!
     As the Lord brought this to my mind, I felt long dormant feelings of anger, even rage, rise up in me. How dare this person try to assassinate the character of a child of God! Then I said, “Yes, Lord, You are right

(as usual). I have held unforgiveness in my heart.
Thank you for showing me. I'm sorry. Please forgive me. And, Lord, I choose to forgive this person.”
      Now, whenever Satan tries to bring up my attitude of unforgiveness, I say, “Nope. I have forgiven him, and God has forgiven me. It's under the blood of Jesus.” Then I immediately say, “Thank you, Lord, for helping me to forgive. What a wonderful Lord You are!” Then I begin to praise and worship the Lord.
      Giving praise and worship to Jesus makes the enemy's plans backfire. He hopes to drag me back into unforgiveness by causing me to doubt my decision to forgive. But each time he does, I use it as an opportunity to exalt the name of Jesus.
     Does the enemy ever try to drag you back into unforgiveness after you have determined to forgive someone? If he tries, just remind him that your sins are forgiven and begin to praise and worship Jesus for all He has done for you. It will silence the enemy (see Psalm 8:2), and you will have a joyous time with our wonderful Savior, Jesus!
      And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins (Mark 11:25).

I read Bringing Heaven into Hell. Your words and God’s message rang clear to me in every chapter. My joy and peace are restored and my addiction has lost its grip on me. I thanked God for being poor, homeless and alone - all things that are necessary for God’s purpose in my life. I now have faith in His love and deliverance. I am a witness to this, sitting in an ice cold cell, happy! John, PA

I had read Bringing Heaven into Hell and began to praise God for our situations and realized that this was the best way to live. But somehow negative thoughts slipped in over the years and I praised sparingly. God is using this book again to direct me to that path and I am going to make this a way of life. Marie, E-mail

I read Bringing Heaven into Hell and it encouraged my thanks to God in areas I had not thought of before. God has blessed me in so many ways. Brandon, CA

I was given Bringing Heaven into Hell and it left an unforgettable impression on me. I now understand how important it is to forgive others and yourself as well, and to praise and thank God for everything. That’s what gives God the opportunity to work in us and our circumstances. Nadeida, Russia

I read Bringing Heaven into Hell and I am impressed with the simple, sincere, honest way, that you share in this book the love of our Savior. I enjoyed how you tell things as they are, and openly share your own mistakes and weaknesses. This book is a living fellowship with your readers and I think that is great! Janna, Minsk

I just finished reading, Bringing Heaven into Hell. I really like what you said in chapter 10 about how God brings someone into our lives that irks us because we need that person. This is so true, especially here in prison. I’m trusting God for those people in my life, and in return He’s helping me to see my stubborn ways.
Jesse, CA

I read Bringing Heaven into Hell and was shocked. Everything in my mind was confused. Everything I had been taught about how to believe, how to gain victory over sickness, how to act in situations, turned out to be wrong. So I read the book again, even though there is a long list of others in our church waiting to read it. I started to think more and more about praise and I began to understand why in many situations I didn’t receive an answer from God. Everything has become clear to me and I’m praising the Lord for all things.                                                Rose, Russia

I was given Bringing Heaven into Hell. I thank God for this book, it is better than ‘sliced bread’! I had a personal revival as I ploughed through it. Even though I’ve been a Christina for 20 years this book really blessed me.        Daphne, Singapore