Friday, January 20, 2012

Deer Heavenly Father

So last night I knelt down with my wife for prayers and she began as most of us do, Dear Heavenly Father. Now sometimes my mind goes off on tangents and surprise surprise, I thought "Deer Heavenly Father" and I imagined a big buck like the one on Bambi.
Can you imagine if we prayed to a "Deer Heavenly Father"? Could you trust such a being? Maybe, but I don't think that I could. How could I trust something that doesn't understand me. How could I trust something or someone I am not familiar with?
For that moment I was grateful that I say Dear Heavenly Father and not Deer Heavenly Father. It is great to know that God has a body of flesh and bones just like I do. That he isn't some unknowable spirit, but he is a real, loving Father, who understands all my needs. I am especially grateful for the First Vision of the Prophet Joseph Smith and with it, the restoration of the knowledge of a loving Heavenly Father.