Bow the Knee

Last Monday night I was listening to our church and school combined choirs singing the beautiful and meaningful song, "Bow the Knee."

Bow the knee. Trust the heart of your Father
When the answer goes beyond what you can see,
Bow the knee. Lift your eyes towards Heaven
and believe the One who holds eternity.
And when you don't understand,
The purpose of His plan,
In the presence of the King, Bow the knee.

Then I looked at the young student singing whose father is known, for some unknown reason, to be treating his children without love. How can this young person "trust the heart of the Father" when trusting a father means grief and pain? And another young person whose father has abdicated his family responsibilities. And the larger and larger numbers of young people that we see who have been abandoned completely here on earth by their fathers.

I would think it would be very difficult for those young people to sing a song about trusting the heart of their heavenly Father, when their own example of trusting a father is so bad. Young people who lose a parent to death--as difficult as that is--do not seem to face the same issues that young people face who have lost a parent to abandonment or who have a very bad example. And even then I have seen young people who survived that through the incredible faith of loving mothers and other family members. But I am grateful to have never had to face the obstacle of not really knowing how to trust God the Father. . .because I always had an earthly example who was worthy of trust.