January 17, 2010

Douglas Floyd Barber

(Guest Post by my husband, Rob)

Five years have gone by since my father passed away and a lot has happened in these past years. For Karina and I: we have bought our first house, had three children, finished both of my maintenance engineers licences, and most importantly grown into a deeper and closer relationship to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Five years ago we were all mourning asking God why? Why now? This is a question that one day looking back I know He will answer for me. It would be very easy for me to be angry and say “God look at all he has missed out in our lives.” But the truth is he hasn’t missed out, he just hasn’t been with us firsthand. One day, when the Lord’s timing is right, He will call us all home to be with Him and we will be reunited with our loved ones again. Praise be to God our Father, my Father, for He is everlasting, abounding in truth, and perfect in all things, including His timing.

So who was my father? He was a tall, gentle giant, a heavy duty mechanic, and built like one. He taught me how to raise children, love my wife, and help others. He had a servant’s heart and enjoyed helping out wherever he could. He loved the outdoors and taught me how to hunt, fish, and respect the land. He was never hasty, always giving due time to think things over. Sometimes you would ask something and a few days later, when you had forgotten about it, he would give you an answer. I have learned a lot and still continue to learn a lot from the legacy that he has left me. I often ask myself what he would do in this situation, whatever it might have been.

Thank you God for giving me such a man to me to be my father! Thank you God for the time that you gave me with him! Thank you God for who he was and what he taught me!

So today on the fifth anniversary of his death, although my heart still misses him very much, I have nothing left to say but, Thank you Lord God for my father, Douglas Floyd Barber.

3 comments:

Jen Guitard said...

Rob's thoughts and comments about his dad very much touched me this morning, I am blessed to see how much God is doing in your family. Thank you for this blog, I love checking in on what God is doing in your lives and am often encouraged and convicted through the words that the Holy Spirit gives you.

Michael Eckert said...

very nice post. i know that is a bland comment, but it was a very good read.

Amanda said...

As just coming from being with a family who has just lost their father, this post lets me know that they have a long road ahead of them. Yet we are already thanking God for the chance to know John, the man who was father to many.

Rob, thank you for posting this. I am sorry for your loss and it's hard to know what God has in mind when people like this leave our lives. But I'm glad that you can come to Him with a thankful heart.

Thanks for sharing.