Blaming Dear Old Dad

Lately he had felt a weight
In his very heart and soul,
And had sought some kind of easing—
To feel free again and whole.

Well, philosophy and therapy
The world did gladly share,
Assuring him that pain he felt
Was needless and unfair.

Once they learned his father spanked him
When he stole a candy bar,
They told him that for all these years
He’d had to bear the scar.

They said no wonder that he suffered,
For he’d had to rise above
This cruel paternal action,
This betrayal of his love.

So he listened to the world’s words,
But came a whisper in his heart
That he and his dear Saviour
Had begun to drift apart,

And that troubling in his soul was not
A spanking from his past,
But a need to find the Lord’s will,
And find peace of mind at last.

He thought about that candy bar
And Dad’s worried, somber face
As he spoke of God’s forgiving love
Once that spanking’d taken place.

And now he found a quiet corner
Where he could kneel in prayer
And speak to God in earnest,
And find healing comfort there.

And as he rose up from his knees,
Feeling lightness in his soul,
Sweet relief washed over him,
And he felt refreshed and whole.

He thought of dear old Dad again
And the task he’d set about
To use God’s instructions for his family
And to keep temptation out.

And he wondered if one of those nights
When he found Dad deep in prayer,
Kneeling with his Bible
By his favorite easy chair,

If Dad had found in Proverbs
An answer to his prayer—
He must not, despite its pain to him,
The rod of correction spare,

For Dad knew the devil’s way is step by step
To lead man into sin,
and it only takes a stolen treat
To let that path begin.

Oh, yes, Dad had affected his life
By the guidance he had shown,
And he thanked God it was the Scriptures,
Not the world’s words he had known!

“Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let
not thy soul spare for his crying.”
(Proverbs 19:18)

by Vicki Porter

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