I see on TV where people in Cuba and other places in the world are fighting for freedom
and I’m here, sitting at an easy chair, posting to you.
I thank god many times a day that I have been immensely blessed.
And those who cread this have been blessed too.
Don’t let it slip away.
It can.
Freedom isn’t free.
Others have pointed out that those in places like Cuba and Hong Kong carry American flags when protesting their government. Maybe we should bring those protesters here and send the America haters the Hong Kong and Cuba.
Good morning!
I think that those who have known nothing except freedom, and focused on the negative things in their lives rather than focusing on the positives, are the ones that truly don’t recognize the value of freedom. They believe the negatives in their lives will magically disappear with a change to our form of government. They don’t know history. They are clueless except for their own personal realm. They are the lovers of self with no regard to considering wisdom learned through the ages and contained in God’s word. It is a sad, sad time, but our strength is in the joy of the Lord despite all this madness swirling around us.
This is an article I shared on my “Christian Friends” list on Facebook. Two people “liked” it, but three others took issue with it. So I thought I’d drop it on here to see what you all might think.
Although Abba does have the meaning of Daddy today, and may have in earlier history, as this mentions, and I have read elsewhere, at the time the Bible was written, Abba did not exactly mean Daddy, but was a bit more formal, like “dear Father”. One comment took issue with the idea that Daddy is not respectful. My reply was that perhaps the usage of Daddy is kind of an over-familiarity.
So what do you all think? (I wish Roscuro were here to comment, as she often has insights and knowledge about these kinds of things.)
Kizzie, I have not read the article yet. My initial thought is that God is not limited in the forms He may use to draw people. He is the perfect Father and knows us personally. He is above our earthly fathers in status so there should be no confusion about the roles they play in our lives. To someone who was born to a single mom and never knew their earthly father they might see how the Heavenly Father has taken over that role in their lives. They might think of Father God as their Abba and Daddy plus so much more. Using Daddy might indicate that one facet a person needs for a time, similar to how a widow or an unmarried woman might consider herself married to Jesus because as a group of individuals we are the body and He is the head or completion of the church. I think overall it is up to God to judge this usage of addressing Him for the Holy Spirit to work in sanctification if there is a problem, and for those not walking in the shoes of others to not be harsh toward those in difficult situations.
Kizzie I read the article and I admit I cringe when I hear the usage of “daddy” or “I climbed into the lap of Daddy” referencing the Lord God Most High. He is to be revered as Creator over all no matter. I will not admonished nor chastise anyone being so..in my estimation…familiar. So often I sense some viewing our Creator a small god…in our image…but I am not Him and defer to Him in such instance. He knows….
Chas – What I meant about Roscuro is that she is well-read and knowledgeable about early Christian times, so might have something to add to the discussion.
Something that was mentioned in our sermon last week was Jesus’ remark that he has called his disciples “friends.” But going forward, none of the apostles never used that language to refer to the relationship between themselves and their Lord.
Oh, we all call our fathers different name based on our relationship and the circumstance.
When we were mad at our dad in later life, I’d say, “He’s actually our second cousin 7 times removed,” which would make us laugh and break the ice. Had he been his usually witty self, we could have called him cousin at times like that.
He was Daddy when I was young, of course; but never a Papa.
I remember the awkwardness of moving to Dad, but Daddy didn’t seem right any more.
The same would be true of God— it really depends on the circumstance.
Many teachers advocate people who have difficulty accepting God’s love use terms like Daddy and Papa.
It’s a way of encouraging intimacy for folks who have trouble that way.
It feels awkward to me and I don’t use it.
But if it helps someone else, why bother about it?
I don’t mind Abba, and occasionally use it.
I saw that article and cringed. I didn’t want to read it. I’m tired of people shaming others.
I’m sure that’s not the point, but the title— and writing a title is an art, BTW— felt judgmental.
I didn’t need that type of thing in my life these days from strangers.
Michelle – I hope you know me well enough to know that I would not intentionally share something that I thought was intended to shame anyone. I understood it mostly as a matter of word definition. The subject of words and their changing definitions throughout the years and centuries is fascinating to me.
My friend, Karen, expressed recently how hurt she is by the misuse of the name Karen. I told her she is in good company as Jesus and God experience the misuse of their names frequently. When the familiar word Daddy is used for God, it is at least used in a loving way toward Him. I am a bit put off by the frequent start of group prayers when people quickly say, “We love you, God.” It is said so fast, like rote, and it does not sound as if it is from the heart. I have noticed that from several different pastors. Sometimes it’s not the words but the way they are said . . .
Michelle, which article title? I only saw “Why ‘Abba’ Does Not Mean ‘Daddy'” which seems like a straightforward definitional headline to me. But you might be talking about a different one.
I’ve only heard the “Abba is like Daddy” thing a couple of times, and it rubs me wrong. One time that I heard it, they mentioned that little kids feel close to their daddies and we should feel the same way about God, or something like that. But in general, a child young enough to say Daddy is also young enough to experience great awe of that father. Let’s say I’d married my husband and met his dad, and I said, “I really would rather call him Daddy.” As an adult, that would just not be the most respectful way to start addressing someone. In the South, some adults call their fathers Daddy, based on that childhood relationship. But it’s a continuation of a childhood term, not something you just start using. For an adult to address God that way does indeed sound “overly familiar.” It’s along the same lines as coming up with a nickname for Jesus to make Him our buddy.
Anytime we try to make God cute and cuddly, we are in grave danger.
I read a number of articles a few months ago about the “Abba”/”Daddy” question. My conclusion from all the stuff I read was that Abba includes the sense of trust/intimacy that people are trying to point to by equating Abba=Daddy, but that Abba also includes the idea of respect and obedience that may be missing from how Daddy is often used in English.
I don’t have a good sense of what nuances “Daddy” carries for most people. My sister and I continued to call our father Daddy even as we got older, and never did switch to a different name for him. It had nothing to do with feeling close to him (at least not for me), we just were used to calling him that so we continued. He signed his letters Dad, but in my mind Dad conveyed a sense of trust and closeness that I didn’t feel with him.
With my parents, I eventually switched to calling them Mom and Dad, probably in my early teens, I would guess. But my girls (ages 32 and 29) still call me Mommy, and Hubby was still Daddy. It seems more common for women to continue calling their fathers Daddy than it is to keep calling their mother Mommy. But I did hear that my father and his sisters continued to call their mother Mommy.
Actually, although Chickadee may call me Mommy, she prefers to call me Mama.
It reminds me of an old joke about a young priest being nervous about preaching. An older priest suggested he take a sip of communion wine to calm him down. After the service the older priest gave him a list:
First, sip don’t gulp
Second, we do not refer to the Holy Trinity as Big Daddy, Junior, and the Spook
Oh Janice I can relate to you friend Karen’s annoyance at the negative “Karen” reference. How did that start anyway?! I dislike it when someone says “don’t be such a Negative Nancy”…ugh…just say not all Nancys are negative!!…unless your last name is Pelosi!! 😂
When I was in first grade, periodically our teacher would look into our desks and we’d be left a note, either “Neat Pete” or “Messy Bessy.” All in all I don’t like using real people’s names for such. Soon after Dad died, a commercial came out in which my dad’s first name was sort of the punchline. I don’t remember what company or how they used his name, but it seems like it was something like tracking down the only person in America stupid enough not to have tried their product and liked it. My mom really hated that commercial.
And I do have people I know and love named Karen. I also know a black Karen. It just strikes me as pointless and rude to use a name like that.
AJ, did you get to see the swallows doing in-flight feeding of their young? I got to see that for the first time this year, though I didn’t get any photos of the process. (I’m not very good at having my camera in the right place and the right focus for flight shots.) It was very cool to watch it, though.
Nancyjill, I receive emails from Ministry Watch. The exec director is Warren Cole Smith who was with World Magazine. He put out an invite to people in Colorado Springs to a luncheon. Art and I use to attend such gatherings under the umbrella of World Magazine. They were always fun and informative. I thought you might be interested in attending.
I also want to remind my He wrote:
“I will be coming to Colorado Springs on July 27, and — if you live in the Springs — I would love to have lunch with you. I’ve reserved a room at a restaurant right off of I-25 at Woodman. For details, click here. I’ll also be in Denver (Highlands Ranch) the next day, Wednesday the 28th. Details for that event here. Lunch is just $16 and that includes a copy of my new book “Faith-Based Fraud.” If you’re around, I hope you’ll join me.”
Wandering Views 
Good morning again.
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I see on TV where people in Cuba and other places in the world are fighting for freedom
and I’m here, sitting at an easy chair, posting to you.
I thank god many times a day that I have been immensely blessed.
And those who cread this have been blessed too.
Don’t let it slip away.
It can.
Freedom isn’t free.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Morning Chas. I am also praying that this generation treasures their freedom
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Good morning all.
Others have pointed out that those in places like Cuba and Hong Kong carry American flags when protesting their government. Maybe we should bring those protesters here and send the America haters the Hong Kong and Cuba.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Good morning!
I think that those who have known nothing except freedom, and focused on the negative things in their lives rather than focusing on the positives, are the ones that truly don’t recognize the value of freedom. They believe the negatives in their lives will magically disappear with a change to our form of government. They don’t know history. They are clueless except for their own personal realm. They are the lovers of self with no regard to considering wisdom learned through the ages and contained in God’s word. It is a sad, sad time, but our strength is in the joy of the Lord despite all this madness swirling around us.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great shot of that bird in flight. I think it is a blue heron? Massive wing span.
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Look closer Janice.
There are 2.
One was there, the other showed up, and then they put on a flying show chasing each other around the pond. Mating probably.
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I looked again and still don’t see but one.
But it could be the fault of 91 year old eyes.
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Pretty birds up there….so gracefully floating through the air!
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Good morning. In class learning about our electronic medical records.
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I agree with California parents about mask mandates.
This is not spreading around school age kids.
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But the school suprentendants want to be doing something.
Something, is sometimes worse than nothing.
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This is an article I shared on my “Christian Friends” list on Facebook. Two people “liked” it, but three others took issue with it. So I thought I’d drop it on here to see what you all might think.
Although Abba does have the meaning of Daddy today, and may have in earlier history, as this mentions, and I have read elsewhere, at the time the Bible was written, Abba did not exactly mean Daddy, but was a bit more formal, like “dear Father”. One comment took issue with the idea that Daddy is not respectful. My reply was that perhaps the usage of Daddy is kind of an over-familiarity.
So what do you all think? (I wish Roscuro were here to comment, as she often has insights and knowledge about these kinds of things.)
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justin-taylor/why-abba-does-not-mean-daddy/
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I don’t have any knowledge or insight. But I don’t see it to be an issue worth nowledge or insight.
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Kizzie, I have not read the article yet. My initial thought is that God is not limited in the forms He may use to draw people. He is the perfect Father and knows us personally. He is above our earthly fathers in status so there should be no confusion about the roles they play in our lives. To someone who was born to a single mom and never knew their earthly father they might see how the Heavenly Father has taken over that role in their lives. They might think of Father God as their Abba and Daddy plus so much more. Using Daddy might indicate that one facet a person needs for a time, similar to how a widow or an unmarried woman might consider herself married to Jesus because as a group of individuals we are the body and He is the head or completion of the church. I think overall it is up to God to judge this usage of addressing Him for the Holy Spirit to work in sanctification if there is a problem, and for those not walking in the shoes of others to not be harsh toward those in difficult situations.
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I was trying to add a comma after ‘addressing Him’ but I hit send by accident.
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Kizzie I read the article and I admit I cringe when I hear the usage of “daddy” or “I climbed into the lap of Daddy” referencing the Lord God Most High. He is to be revered as Creator over all no matter. I will not admonished nor chastise anyone being so..in my estimation…familiar. So often I sense some viewing our Creator a small god…in our image…but I am not Him and defer to Him in such instance. He knows….
LikeLiked by 2 people
Chas – What I meant about Roscuro is that she is well-read and knowledgeable about early Christian times, so might have something to add to the discussion.
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Something that was mentioned in our sermon last week was Jesus’ remark that he has called his disciples “friends.” But going forward, none of the apostles never used that language to refer to the relationship between themselves and their Lord.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Oh, we all call our fathers different name based on our relationship and the circumstance.
When we were mad at our dad in later life, I’d say, “He’s actually our second cousin 7 times removed,” which would make us laugh and break the ice. Had he been his usually witty self, we could have called him cousin at times like that.
He was Daddy when I was young, of course; but never a Papa.
I remember the awkwardness of moving to Dad, but Daddy didn’t seem right any more.
The same would be true of God— it really depends on the circumstance.
Many teachers advocate people who have difficulty accepting God’s love use terms like Daddy and Papa.
It’s a way of encouraging intimacy for folks who have trouble that way.
It feels awkward to me and I don’t use it.
But if it helps someone else, why bother about it?
I don’t mind Abba, and occasionally use it.
I saw that article and cringed. I didn’t want to read it. I’m tired of people shaming others.
I’m sure that’s not the point, but the title— and writing a title is an art, BTW— felt judgmental.
I didn’t need that type of thing in my life these days from strangers.
So I went past it.
My Father would approve.
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Michelle – I hope you know me well enough to know that I would not intentionally share something that I thought was intended to shame anyone. I understood it mostly as a matter of word definition. The subject of words and their changing definitions throughout the years and centuries is fascinating to me.
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My first grandchild (The Beck) named me “Da” And it stuck. All of the, over 40 yrs old now, call me Da
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Her name is Rebecca, but nobody would guess it.
she’s “The Beck”
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My friend, Karen, expressed recently how hurt she is by the misuse of the name Karen. I told her she is in good company as Jesus and God experience the misuse of their names frequently. When the familiar word Daddy is used for God, it is at least used in a loving way toward Him. I am a bit put off by the frequent start of group prayers when people quickly say, “We love you, God.” It is said so fast, like rote, and it does not sound as if it is from the heart. I have noticed that from several different pastors. Sometimes it’s not the words but the way they are said . . .
LikeLiked by 1 person
Michelle, which article title? I only saw “Why ‘Abba’ Does Not Mean ‘Daddy'” which seems like a straightforward definitional headline to me. But you might be talking about a different one.
I’ve only heard the “Abba is like Daddy” thing a couple of times, and it rubs me wrong. One time that I heard it, they mentioned that little kids feel close to their daddies and we should feel the same way about God, or something like that. But in general, a child young enough to say Daddy is also young enough to experience great awe of that father. Let’s say I’d married my husband and met his dad, and I said, “I really would rather call him Daddy.” As an adult, that would just not be the most respectful way to start addressing someone. In the South, some adults call their fathers Daddy, based on that childhood relationship. But it’s a continuation of a childhood term, not something you just start using. For an adult to address God that way does indeed sound “overly familiar.” It’s along the same lines as coming up with a nickname for Jesus to make Him our buddy.
Anytime we try to make God cute and cuddly, we are in grave danger.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Cool catch, AJ. Birds in flight are difficult. And yes, I saw both right away. 🙂
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I read a number of articles a few months ago about the “Abba”/”Daddy” question. My conclusion from all the stuff I read was that Abba includes the sense of trust/intimacy that people are trying to point to by equating Abba=Daddy, but that Abba also includes the idea of respect and obedience that may be missing from how Daddy is often used in English.
I don’t have a good sense of what nuances “Daddy” carries for most people. My sister and I continued to call our father Daddy even as we got older, and never did switch to a different name for him. It had nothing to do with feeling close to him (at least not for me), we just were used to calling him that so we continued. He signed his letters Dad, but in my mind Dad conveyed a sense of trust and closeness that I didn’t feel with him.
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With my parents, I eventually switched to calling them Mom and Dad, probably in my early teens, I would guess. But my girls (ages 32 and 29) still call me Mommy, and Hubby was still Daddy. It seems more common for women to continue calling their fathers Daddy than it is to keep calling their mother Mommy. But I did hear that my father and his sisters continued to call their mother Mommy.
Actually, although Chickadee may call me Mommy, she prefers to call me Mama.
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Mine are grown and have grandkids. They still call me “da:.
That’s what Becky named me.
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~ LA County will require masks indoors regardless of vaccination status starting Saturday night ~
Well, the freedom was nice while it lasted.
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My grandpa was still Daddy at age 103. I called my father Daddy until he died at 65.
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Lizzie, I hope you didn’t think my comment was taking issue with the article – it was just a comment
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Pauline, it seems sad to me that you felt that way about your father. Thank you for sharing that perspective on the subject.
I ended up going from calling my Mama my Mother. My father was Daddy, but later I sometimes called him Dah Do Dah sort of like a nickname.
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Linda – Actually, I wasn’t sure, and thought it could be read either way. Thanks for clarifying. 🙂
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That kind of reminds me of the time a few years ago when I wrote a comment agreeing with something YA had posted, and she started arguing with me. 😀
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It reminds me of an old joke about a young priest being nervous about preaching. An older priest suggested he take a sip of communion wine to calm him down. After the service the older priest gave him a list:
First, sip don’t gulp
Second, we do not refer to the Holy Trinity as Big Daddy, Junior, and the Spook
God is God the Father. It’s a sign of respect.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Oh Janice I can relate to you friend Karen’s annoyance at the negative “Karen” reference. How did that start anyway?! I dislike it when someone says “don’t be such a Negative Nancy”…ugh…just say not all Nancys are negative!!…unless your last name is Pelosi!! 😂
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Nancyjill, I’ve never heard anyone say “Negative Nancy.” That is terrible, but you are right about Pelosi!
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When I was in first grade, periodically our teacher would look into our desks and we’d be left a note, either “Neat Pete” or “Messy Bessy.” All in all I don’t like using real people’s names for such. Soon after Dad died, a commercial came out in which my dad’s first name was sort of the punchline. I don’t remember what company or how they used his name, but it seems like it was something like tracking down the only person in America stupid enough not to have tried their product and liked it. My mom really hated that commercial.
And I do have people I know and love named Karen. I also know a black Karen. It just strikes me as pointless and rude to use a name like that.
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And that’s why I go by Kare.
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I don’t understand none of that.
i go by Charlie. I didn’t know my name was Charles until I joined the AF.
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I think I told you that before.
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I’ve always been called Allen.
I hate Al, and will immediately correct anyone who calls me that. It’s Allen.
I’ve never heard “negative Nancy” before.
But I have on occasion called a man a Nancy when they were being a wuss. 🙂
Stop being a Nancy, unless your name is Nancy. 🙂
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AJ, did you get to see the swallows doing in-flight feeding of their young? I got to see that for the first time this year, though I didn’t get any photos of the process. (I’m not very good at having my camera in the right place and the right focus for flight shots.) It was very cool to watch it, though.
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Nancyjill, I receive emails from Ministry Watch. The exec director is Warren Cole Smith who was with World Magazine. He put out an invite to people in Colorado Springs to a luncheon. Art and I use to attend such gatherings under the umbrella of World Magazine. They were always fun and informative. I thought you might be interested in attending.
I also want to remind my He wrote:
“I will be coming to Colorado Springs on July 27, and — if you live in the Springs — I would love to have lunch with you. I’ve reserved a room at a restaurant right off of I-25 at Woodman. For details, click here. I’ll also be in Denver (Highlands Ranch) the next day, Wednesday the 28th. Details for that event here. Lunch is just $16 and that includes a copy of my new book “Faith-Based Fraud.” If you’re around, I hope you’ll join me.”
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