Jun 11, 2019
Episode Summary:
Recently, close to Mother’s Day, we aired an episode about
overcoming Mother Wounds. We received very positive feedback about
that episode, and felt that as we near Father’s Day, knowing that
can be a painful day for many, that we should also have an episode
about the impact of being fatherless and experiencing Father
Wounds.
If you have been left fatherless, or have ever felt wounded by
your earthly father, or felt that your relationship with your
earthly father has potentially negatively impacted your
relationship with your Heavenly Father, then today is the perfect
show for you. You don’t have to be fatherless to experience father
wounds.
Today I’m talking with my friend, Lisa Burkhardt Worley, author
of The Only Father I Ever Knew: How a Fatherless Child Finally
Found True Love. In this episode, Lisa shared her experience
of living fatherless from birth, and how she came to realize the
need to heal the resulting father wounds that ensued. Lisa shared
how she came to experience a relationship with God, her heavenly
father, and begin to heal the wound that began when she was left
fatherless at birth.
Lisa and I talked about the impact of being fatherless on our
personality and our behavior, and how we interact with others. We
also talked about some ways to begin the healing process.
Quotables from the episode:
- If you have ever felt wounded by your earthly father, or felt
that your relationship with your earthly father has potentially
negatively impacted your relationship with your Heavenly Father,
then today is the episode for you.
- A father wound can occur when a relationship with a father was
not all God intended it to be; whether from an absent father, an
abusive father, or even a father who was physically present but not
emotionally present.
- A father speaks into your self-esteem. The father is so
important to a child’s well-being. When someone is fatherless, they
often struggle with self-esteem, and often search elsewhere for the
love of a father figure.
- Father wounds can occur to boys or girls, men or women.
- The Heavenly Father will pursue us. Sometimes we say yes, and
sometimes we run the other direction. The decision is ours.
- God has a heart for the fatherless. He doesn’t want you to feel
alone. But we have to be open to Him stepping into that role of
father for us.
- We can tell God the Father anything we want to. There is
nothing hidden in His sight.
- We cannot equate God the Father to our earthly fathers.
- Many think of God the Father as distant. But He is our Abba
Daddy who views us as His child. He wants an intimate relationship
with Him.
- If our earthly father was abusive, we think of God as a harsh
God. If our earthly father was absent, leaving us fatherless, we
think of God as a distant God. But in actuality, He pursues us
through His word, through other people.
- Search the Bible to see what the Word says about God the
Father. He is beyond our comprehension. He has such a deep love for
us that it takes God’s power to be able to appreciate how great it
is (Eph. 3).
- God, out of his love for us, gave mankind free will. That’s the
way it is with our earthly fathers who wrong us. Wounded people
wound people. Sometimes we need to look to see what kind of a
childhood our fathers had, because it can influence how they father
us.
- If we will forgive our earthly father, it releases something
inside us so that we can accept the love of the Heavenly
Father.
- It’s never too late to get to know your heavenly father. God
loves you with a perfect, never-ending love. He loves you so much
that He gave His only son so that if we accept His gift, we can
live with Him and be loved on forever for eternity, with a perfect
love.
Scripture References:
- Psalm 68:5 “Father to the fatherless, defender of widows—this
is God, whose dwelling is holy.”
- 1 John 3:1 “See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls
us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong
to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because
they don’t know him.”
- Psalm 146:3-5 “Don’t put your confidence in powerful people;
there is no help for you there. When they breathe their last, they
return to the earth, and all their plans die with them. But joyful
are those who have the God of Israel as their helper, whose hope is
in the Lord their God.”
Recommended Resources:
- The Only Father I Ever Knew: How a Fatherless Child Finally
Found True Love by Lisa Burkhardt Worley
- Knowing the Father: A Six-Week Bible Study to Understand
God’s Father-Like Attributes by Lisa Burkhardt Worley
- Pearls of Promise: A Devotional Designed to Reassure You of
God’s Love by Lisa Burkhardt Worley
- https://drmichellebengtson.com/words-from-a-loving-father/
- The Overcoming Life by Jimmy Evans
- “Hope Prevails: Insights from a Doctor’s Personal Journey
Through Depression” by Dr. Michelle Bengtson, winner of the
Christian Literary Award Reader’s Choice Award
- “Hope Prevails Bible Study” by Dr. Michelle Bengtson,
winner of the Christian Literary Award Reader’s Choice Award
Social Media Links for Host and Guest:
Stay connected with Lisa Burkhardt Worley:
For more hope, stay connected with Dr. Bengtson at:
Air Date: June 10, 2019
Guest: Lisa Burkhardt Worley, Author, Speaker,
Radio Show Host
Hosted By: Dr. Michelle Bengtson
Audio Technical Support: Bryce Bengtson