had an absolute BLAST doing this session with this fun, giggly, frisbee lovin' family.
stay together
I remember a few months back sitting on a bench while reading in the park, I saw a father talking to his four children as they were about to go for a bike ride. They were ready.. they had their helmets on, knee pads and elbow pads. As the father was sitting on the bench next to me I saw the way he looked into his children’s eyes as he said “stay together.. don’t split up or lose each other” I could feel the compelling importance in his voice. His children nodded their little helmet heads and rode off. I looked at the fathers reaction as he let them go ride around the park together. I felt the weight of his words as he so desperately urged them to stay together.. to not split up.. or lose each other. Though concerned for the younger sibling, he trusted the more mature sibling to take the lead, to help if needed, to keep an eye on them all.
This moment of the father towards his children has been unyielding, it has shaken my core and it has made a home in my memory.
Stay together.
Don’t split up.
Don’t lose each other.
Isn’t this not just an earthy fathers heart, but the Heavenly Fathers heart?
His cry and plead is for his children to stay together; to support a brother or sister.
Because things get hard and life gets messy and we all need someone to fight for us. And my goodness life will knock you down and when it does, we need to pick each other up. We need to stand up for yes, ourselves.. but for others. When the waves of chaos come one after the other we need each other. We need to defend one another, we need to sacrifice. Life is too much for us to handle alone; may we never choose the path of isolation.
Stay together, because we need each other. We need more honesty and love.
Don’t split up, because when life is too much for our hearts we need to link arms and charge against the dark and destruction and find victory.
Yes we will fall, but we will rise.
Don’t lose each other — fight for each other.
This… This is The Fathers heart for his children.
Let us always choose to love our brothers and sisters. May we never fight against each other in the difficult times, but instead let us fight together against these battles. May we pick up the broken and speak when others cannot. Because we are stronger together. We are made to be together. Weep together. Hope together. Win together.