My biological father

Our first impressions of Christ are generally based on our relationship with our fathers. In The Way of the Wild Heart, John Eldredge encourages fathers to take notice of their sons, to treat them as "Beloved Sons." He says that we should show our sons that we love them and enjoy the activities that they enjoy.

Many times in my life I focused on people who did not like or accept me, such as my stepdad. As I think back on my childhood, my biological father treated me like his Beloved Son. The problem was that I only saw him on the weekends. That made for a really tough transition back to my stepdad and mom's house on Sunday nights.

I'm thankful for my biological dad's impact on my life, even though it could only be on weekends. It might had been more difficult for me to accept Christ if my initial impressions of Him were based on my stepdad's attitude towards me.