Becoming a man....

Here's something I have wrestled with for a long time, while watching one of my favorite (why?) TV shows, "Deadliest Catch" it dawned on me I am not alone. A show based around crab fishing, I hate crab because my wife is allergic to crab! Here's the back story, "greenhorn" boards a boat for the life changing experience of living on the edge, pushing the limits, braving the elements, trudging through limitations of human endurance, placing your life in the hands of the "crew" while at the mercy of the sea. All for a flippin' crustation hiding on the ocean floor. This "greenhorn" has never done something like this before, has something to prove and this will in his mind be the turning point in his life. He survives this experience, he has earned the respect of the crew, earns his stripes sort to speak. The season has drawn to a close, the boat returning to it's port, families waiting in anticipation of their return, his test is not yet complete. He says his goodbyes to the crew, disembarks the vessel and is greeted and embraced by his father. While in his father's arms, he says "I did it dad, I am a man..."

I have never had this turning point of embrace, spending many a day wishing I had my father's approval and assurance. What I have found in seeking an earthly father's respect, it may not be there, I am no lesser of a man, I am falling prey to the limitations of the world, trying to live up to expectations. This limits me to live for or through someone else, I may never find that approval. My assurance must come through Him, God's purpose is to will heal, build and empower me, not enable me... having something to prove. It is all about my embracing Him, for my ways are not His ways. Luke 15:20 ...."But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him." He has equipped me, I am what I am, a man, I choose His embrace...