(although this is a lengthy article, please read carefully, and in its entirety)
As you may know, we are in the depths of an election season here in the United States. Those who have known me in the past have known that I used to be quite the political ‘junkie’, so to speak. At the time, I was convinced that the Lord’s main mission was to bless, save, and change the United States of America. I was also convinced that one major way He was going to accomplish this mission was through the political realm. Those who know me now, however, know that I no longer believe this. My move to a new nation helped me see through this faulty mission.
(You can read more about my move to a new nation by clicking here)
From Deep Hatred To Deep Love
In today’s post, I would like to share my journey out of deep hatred into deep love. It is such an unlikely story that I have a hard time comprehending it. Simply recalling these events as I write brings back a flood of emotions that are difficult for me to contain. This particular story begins back in December of 2009, in the basement of the home of my in-laws.
A Moment Of Laughter- December 2009
I remember this moment like it was yesterday. It had been a busy & difficult few months, and I was back home visiting family for the holidays. One day in particular, I sensed the need to get away and think in solitude. As a result, I retreated to the basement to quiet my spirit and commune with the Lord. As soon as I sat down, Father began to speak to me. That day, what I sensed Him say to me caught me completely off guard, however, and seemed utterly ridiculous. Here is a paraphrase of the conversation:
ME: Lord, I love you. I am tired and I need your strength. This situation (referring to a situation that occurred that past year) has been so difficult and I don’t know what else to do. Please take care of everything.
FATHER: I have something that I would like to communicate to Barack Obama.
ME: What?
FATHER: I have a message for Barack Obama and I am entrusting a message for him to you.
ME: (Laughter) Ok, I must really be tired…Is this really you Lord? Do you know who I am? I don’t exactly run in circles that would give me an audience with the President of the United States. Plus, I can’t stand him. I have a lot of things that I can think to say to him, but I’m fairly confident none of those things would be very nice.
FATHER: (silence)
Until that point, that was the most ridiculous thing I had ever sensed the Lord saying to me. I have discovered that when it truly is the Lord speaking to me, however, I am not able to forget it. His thoughts seem to stay burned into my heart and mind. As crazy as it sounds, these thoughts about Barak Obama seemed to be like this. They simply would not go away. At the most odd times, I would think about him and what I sensed I heard from the Lord that day in my in-law’s basement.
As you can imagine, I didn’t say a word about this to anyone. Most people already concluded that I went off the ‘deep end’, and I didn’t want to add to their perception. Thoughts like this, however, made me wonder whether they were right. After a bit of time, I did muster up the courage to tell my wife about what I thought I heard. She laughed at me. I promptly reassured her that I had not planned on, nor did I anticipate, mentioning this to anyone.
A One Second Heart Transplant
About six months later, I was spending the afternoon in the home of a dear brother in Christ from Pakistan. He is a former Muslim who has quite a miraculous story about how his eyes were opened to Christ. He has suffered tremendously as a result of His vision of Christ, but that is another subject for another day. Nonetheless, the Lord chose this day at my friend’s gathering in his home to give me a completely new heart for Barack Obama.
The afternoon at my friend’s gathering was winding down, and several folks in the other room were engaged in a conversation about a fictional film that portrayed a U.S. President. Although the film had nothing to do with Barack Obama, and I was not apart of their conversation about the movie, the Lord brought him to mind when I heard them talking about the film. What happened next was unlike anything that I have ever experienced.
In an instant, I saw Barack Obama’s face in my mind. I instantly became aware of the fact that my heart, that was usually angry & cold toward the thought of him, was completely gone. In what seemed like a fraction of a second, I noticed that I had an entirely new heart for Barack Obama. The mere thought of him caused me to feel an ocean of affection toward him in the same way that one would have when they see their own child for the first time.
It was more than I could contain. I wanted to burst into tears, but that would have been very awkward since it was a joyous and lighthearted gathering and I was simply standing in a room getting ready to leave. How would I explain that? I regained my composure, but my life has not been the same since that divine moment.
I have never experienced such a profound change of heart toward someone so quickly. This new heart did not see Barack Obama as a President, however. Anytime I heard his voice or saw him on television after that, my heart melted the same way it does when I see a little child. It is difficult to explain with words. For months after this, this picture of Obama would come to mind during times of prayer and times I was quiet before the Lord in spirit.
Because of my past political beliefs and preoccupation with right wing politics, this heart transplant was clearly something the Lord was doing. Please understand, this deep love for him had nothing to do with his political office or his policies. I do not see him as ‘President’ or politician. I now view him the same way that I view my own daughter. For me, that has been a miracle of epic proportions. The love that I was experiencing for him was clearly not mine.
A Dinner Of Courage
As I mentioned, the Lord would seem to bring these thoughts to mind at the most random times. About six months later, I was passing through North Carolina on my way back home from a long trip. I decided to stop and have dinner with a friend who lived in the area I was passing through. As we were wrapping up dinner, I sensed the Lord speaking to my heart while my friend was talking with me about something completely unrelated. Here is a paraphrase of how the conversation went:
FATHER: Why have you not told anyone about what I shared with you regarding Barack Obama?
ME: Well…Because they will think I am crazy.
FATHER: No, maybe it’s because you don’t trust me.
ME: Yes, that’s true. But I’m also afraid that I didn’t hear you accurately, and I’m concerned about my own image. (I guess that is a trust issue)
FATHER: I want you to tell Dan about what I spoke to you regarding Barack Obama before you finish dinner tonight. I want you to ask him to pray for you about this situation.
ME: You can’t be serious. This has nothing to do with the conversation we are having, plus he will laugh at me.
FATHER: (silence)
After this exchange was over, I tuned back into the conversation that I was having with my friend Dan. I’ll never forget the look on his face when I shared with him what I sensed the Lord speaking to me about Barack Obama. As I predicted, he laughed at me. He did, however, promise to pray about this situation and I knew he meant it. What happened next, however, completely stunned me.
After dinner was finished and I got back into the car for the long drive home, I decided to check my email on my phone. One email in particular caught my eye. I was intrigued by a personal email invitation to a small gathering in Washington D.C. Apparently, about 50 people were invited to attend a two day gathering in the nation’s capitol to discuss the future of the American church and the impact that the church may have on society and public policy. This was an invitation only gathering.
One of the people organizing this gathering came across an article I wrote about the church, and he felt that I should be apart of the conversation. As I read the details of the agenda of the two day gathering, I noticed that participants of this gathering would need to be cleared by the Secret Service because a part of the meeting would actually be held in the White House with Obama administration officials, and possibly Obama himself!
Obviously, this email had my full attention as it’s not everyday that one gets invited to the White House. I was astounded that I received the email about ten minutes after I felt led to speak to my friend Dan about this. Can you believe it? I immediately began to become aware of another conversation with the Lord as I drove home. Here is a paraphrase of the conversation my spirit was having with the Lord.
FATHER: Do you believe me now?
ME: It really was you after all Lord…I’m not crazy!
FATHER: No, you’re not.
ME: If I see Obama on this visit to the White House, I will probably only have a minute to speak with him. I have no idea what to say to him. Now that I’m taking this seriously, what do you want me to say?
FATHER: (silence)
I received the invitation a few months before the gathering, so I thought I had plenty of time to hear from the Lord about this message for Barack Obama. The only problem was the fact that the Lord didn’t seem to be working on my timetable. I wanted the message now, but I was getting nothing. I didn’t want to make this up. I knew that whatever the message was, it had to be important.
The few months went by quickly. When I left for the conference, I still had absolutely no idea what the message was, or why the Lord was sending me to this conference and the White House. In my life, the Lord’s tendency is to do things last minute, and this seemed to be no exception. The conference was two and a half days long. We would arrive at a small retreat center in Washington on a Wednesday evening, have discussions all day Thursday, and go to the White House for a meeting on Friday morning.
When I arrived at the gathering, I observed the unique assortment of people that were there. Many of them were well known individuals in Evangelical circles, and others were heads of large religious organizations. Then there was me. The Lord truly has a sense of humor:) I am pretty sure some of them wondered who I was and why I was there. Thankfully, the Lord knew why I was there, and it was for another reason entirely.
As I sat through the discussions on Thursday, I thought some of the conversations were interesting and insightful. I was mostly distracted, however. I knew that we were going to the White House the following day, and I desperately wanted to know what this important message was. I was still drawing blanks as to what I might share with Barack Obama if we indeed did have the opportunity to speak with him personally. By the time the discussions were over for the evening on Thursday, and even after speaking with an official from his administration who had been attending the meeting that day, I still had zero insight about what the Lord wanted to communicate to him.
As I was walking up to my room for the evening, I gave up hope of hearing anything from the Lord before going to the White House the following morning. It was just then that I sensed this tender voice say:
FATHER: I just want to be his Dad.
ME: What?
FATHER: (silence)
ME: That’s it?
FATHER: (silence)
ME: That’s your message for him? How am I supposed to tell the President of The United States that you would like to be his Dad?
FATHER: (silence)
To be honest, I wasn’t at all sure I had correctly heard from the Lord. It was all I had to go on, however. I decided to stop stressing myself out about it, and go to bed for the evening. The morning was coming quickly, and I wanted to be fresh for whatever the Lord wanted to do at the White House.
When I woke up the following morning, I had a strange peace about the day. I remembered what I sensed the Lord say the night before about desiring to be Barack’s dad, but I still was very unsure about that. The Lord being his ‘Dad’ just didn’t seem that grandiose and important.
After breakfast, we headed over to the White House grounds for the meeting. After we went through security and were cleared by the Secret Service, we were led into the Executive Office Building on the White House grounds.
Everything (windows, doors, chandeliers, etc…) was ornate, elegant, and very big. We entered a large conference room and were seated around a large & beautiful mahogany wood conference table. An Obama administration official, seated at the head of the table, officially welcomed us to the White House. It seemed like a scene out of a movie for sure. For the next few minutes, we went around the table and introduced ourselves.
After the introductions were finished, the administration official shared something that almost knocked me out of my chair. Here is what he said:
As many of you may know, the President has a deep void in his life that he is very open about sharing. The President has a fatherhood void in his life.
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing! The official went on to share with us about Obama’s personal family life. He did not have a relationship with, or know his biological father from Kenya. Although his mother remarried, no other person filled that role in his life when he was a growing up. It remains a void to this day.
The official then went on to say that because of the void of a father in his own life, the President recognizes that there is also a fatherhood void across the nation. They wanted to address the issue of fatherlessness with a federal program that they brought us there to tell us more about. To be honest, I tuned the rest of the meeting out at that point. I had already heard what I needed to hear, and I sensed the Lord now speaking to my heart very clearly. Two things became crystal clear to me in that moment.
As a young child, Barack Obama was robbed of fatherhood both physically & spiritually.
Barack’s biological father returned to Kenya and abandoned his family when he was only two years old. He never had a relationship with him. That was only a shadow, however, of a much deeper level of fatherlessness in his life. At a young age, a spiritual assault occurred in Barack’s life. As I sat there pondering this in that room in the White House, I began to remember my own first thoughts about God that I had when I was a small child.
When I was six years old, (during the most formative years of my life), I was taught that God was not a father. I was taught that viewing God as a father is a grave sin. I learned this at the Islamic mosque that my dad used to regularly take us to. This is one of the first principles of Islam. This teaching deeply, and negatively affected me in ways that I have not come to understand until the last few years.
In that moment in the White House, I began to see how profound of a void that false understanding of God left in my own life. His remedy for this void in my life was a revelation of Jesus Christ. As Christ is revealed to me, so Father is revealed to me as well. The Son reveals the Father, and the Father reveals the Son. All wounds and voids are filled by this revelation.
(Click here to read more about my experience with Islam when I was six years old)
In that moment in the White House, I also began to see why understanding this is important in regards to Barack Obama’s story. Not only was Barack Obama’s biological father a Muslim, his mother remarried an Indonesian Muslim man during Barack’s most formative years. Barack went to live in Indonesia (a Muslim country) and attended a Muslim school there for a couple of years during this critical time period. I believe this has affected him personally like it has affected me.
We learned that the President was not able to meet with us that day because he was making an unannounced trip to Afghanistan. There in that meeting, I had another conversation with the Lord. Here is a paraphrase that went something like this:
ME: Why did you bring me here to the White House Lord? Why did you want me to know this about Barack’s life? Why did you tell me that you wanted to be his Dad?
FATHER: Because I love him very much, and I wanted you to experience a bit of just how deep this love really is.
ME: You love him so much that you gave me a heart of compassion for him this past year, and you brought me all the way to the White House just to tell me you want to be his Dad? Father, I never knew you could love someone so much that you would go to such great lengths to communicate something that seems so simple. Your love is profound! Thank you for showing me this.
FATHER: As a priest, I want you to know, experience, and carry my love for him in your heart. (Eph. 3:18-19, 1 Pet. 2:9)
The awareness of the love of the Father was so palpable and tangible for me in that room in the White House that day that I thought I would come undone and start weeping uncontrollably. It took supernatural strength for me to not become a glorious basket case in front of all those official people. This experience has left me forever changed.
Why I Am Telling This Story
I already know that many folks reading this article will misunderstand my intentions. Some may be very angry. Please understand, this article is not about politics, public policy, social issues, etc… I have had enough of those kinds of conversations in the past. I have no desire to continue those conversations here. I stopped being interested in things like that when I moved to a new nation.
(Click here to read about my move to a new nation)
This article is about a heart of love for one person to another. Much of evangelicalism is distracted and consumed with politics and man made nation building. For those of us who may still be distracted by such things, please consider this story. Before you engage in and spew harsh political rhetoric this election season, please know that this person, Barack Obama, is deeply loved, cherished, and treasured by a Father who also loves you just as deeply. He is loved with a love that is unmeasurable. Just know that before you speak.
As crazy at it may sound, this article is also for Barack Obama personally. I’d like to finally deliver this message that I have been sitting on for the last year and a half. If by some small miraculous chance you come across this article, I wanted you to know this story of how much you are loved by a Father that notices you perfectly. He has not abandoned you. He loves you and desires to reveal Himself to you through His Son.
May we truly know His love together,
Jamal Jivanjee
I did read the article, Jamal, and it is true that Barack Obama needs our prayers and the love of God to heal inside…anyone who is embracing Islam needs eyes open to see the truth of God. I will join you in praying for Barack Obama.
However, while we are praying, we also have a duty and a responsibility to stand against evil, to vote and to use our influence in the cause of good. America has done more to advance the gospel than any other nation, primarily because of our freedom. That freedom is threatened today. President Obama is not just a wounded man, he is also a liar, a cheater, and a manipulator who will do anything to advance his agenda. While I pray for him that he would have open ears and turn from the evil he is doing, I also pray for America and that he would be stopped from destroying the vehicle for the gospel and the freedom of people as individuals. Love does not just woo and speak kindly, love also wars for what is right.
If the advancement of the gospel relies on a nation as its vehicle we are all in trouble…
China is an Atheistic and Communist country- and is advancing the gospel is ways we have never seen and has a body of committed believers larger than America, and has plans to move west to share the gospel with the Middle East!
Egypt is now headed by a man in the Muslim Brotherhood with a mostly Islamic population- and the Egyptian church is ready and ripe to be send out to the nations and share the gospel with their fellow Arabs in the North.
Africa, with all of it’s corrupt governments, bloodshed, and famine has a church planting movement that is absolutely exploding right now.
All this to say…we don’t need a nation to ensure the advancement of the gospel. And we don’t need freedom either. Though freedom is quite a blessing, I would argue that it’s the lack of freedom that allows the gospel to flourish (see China after the cultural revolution as a great example…)
What we DO need is Christ and a vision for His body. And even crazier– God will advance His gospel with or without our help. We simply get to take part in it as a privilege.
P.S. I, also, am a liar and a cheater and a manipulator. Thank God for grace, eh?
Hannah,
Thanks for your comment sister. Actually, according to 2 Cor. 5:16-17, you are no longer a liar, cheater, manipulator, etc…You are referring to your flesh that has been crucified with Christ on the cross. That old you has passed away. You are now identified by your new nature in Christ. Christ is not a liar, cheater, and manipulator, and that means you are not either.
Lol. I KNEW you would write that.
Thanks Jamal.
I couldn’t resist sister:) You are a vital expression of Christ:)
I really appreciated this blog post Jamal. And equally appreciated this comment sister Hannah.
WOW……I bet he reads this somehow, WOW. I have to pray about this. Thanks bro.
I agree whole heartily. While God has permitted the election of this Man, by no means should people think Obama’s agenda is endorsed by God. Also,its important that we do not play pie and began to divide mans motive and mental state from his faith and like wise we should not play pie with God.
1. God is equally in love with Mitt Romney
2. One can certainly divorce his spiritual duty from his American duties.
Wow…… Conviction……. Immeasurable love of the Father….. not just for me…. or those I love…… but for those who we view are at their worst in this world….. Thank you for sharing and allowing us to carry this message from the Father with you. God is awesome and so is the Christ in you!
Thx Mark, I appreciate you brother.
We are being built together into the house of the Lord!
We have brothers and sisters all over the world, and are being knit together into one human family.
This includes Barack Obama.
Thanks for sharing, Jamal. Not going to lie, I thought you were going to drop some Christ life on Obama, in person!
I don’t want to start a conversation but want to tell you that I am thankful you wrote this. When you just remove the titles of people and see how much the Father really loves, it brings me to tears. I understand what you are saying Jamal, I was there too. Very political but started to back away from it all and then I read your post on moving to another nation. That post confirmed what was happening in my heart. I still struggle from time to time and want to share truth or my opinion of the political system and then I am reminded it does not matter, it is not what is important. I know this isn’t political and some will try to make it that way. I have been seeking to see things with His eyes and not mine. Thank you so much for sharing the heart He has given you to share! I understand the pain of feeling fatherless and I have raised two boys fatherless for 12 years. I am recently remarried and thankful for that from the Lord but I still think of my boys hearts and hoping that they will know the Lord their God as their Father, Dad.
Amen Catherine. Sounds like a new beginning:)
Jamal,
Excellent!
Well of course, Father loves Barak Obama with the Love that is without measure. And Father loves all of His children as much as He loves Barak Obama! We are not fatherless, we have the Father of fathers whose love exceeds the collective fathom of our minds and hearts. We love Him, because He first us, and He loved us to point of emptying Himself that we would know Him and that we would know His love.
Thank you sister:)
Yes, this sounds exactly like the God, the Father I know. Getting caught up in the cares of the Kingdom is a whole different proposition from the World we know… Great post, Jamal. Re-directing focus in a time it’s most needed…
Jamal I love you, and the love we have for one another is not of this world. We are beginning to begin to see this great Love, an has He reveals His love for one, we quickly understand it is for all.
I love Barack Obama, and this has nothing to do with his office, he is my brother.
Love, this eternal love that transcends all human barriers that flows in and through us is to bring honor and praise to the One who is defined by Love, Jesus Christ.
I love you too Jim:)
We’re on the same page friend. My husband and I used to be in the same boat as you when it came to arguing about political stuff. What a journey the Lord’s taken us on since then!! Would be interesting to meet someday and relate stores because we seem to share a lot of similar experiences. I too have had a heart for our president (very much despite myself in the beginning, haha). I believe Kris Vallotton gave a prophetic word that while Obama was in office he would have a “Abraham Lincoln” moment. He would be radically touched by the Lord in the same way Abraham Lincoln was while he was president. I’m not sure that I can say I’ve seen that happen, but there’s still time – and hope. Love believes in people, and holds out hope for them. How ironic that that was Obama’s campaign slogan: hope. I bless you with grace and encouragement for sharing this. And I say grace over all who read this.
Amen Ashley!
That’s a powerful story, bro.
Every gov’t of man has 1 destiny: to reveal man’s futility to govern himself, unto a revelation that we need a King.
Love. This. Quote.
Is it a Trevor Honeycutt original or quoting from somewhere else?
It’s an original!
Very profound – thanks for sharing.
Preach it bro!
Great article Jamal … it’s so easy to get focused on what a person does or stands for and forget about who he/she is … that Christ loved and died for them just like He did for me. Praying that the message will get to POTUS.
Thank you Fred. I hope he does indeed have the opportunity to know how much he is already loved. Blessings to you.
This is incredible stuff. I am not an Obama supporter. A friend treated my husband and I to a movie last Saturday, the movie was 2016 about Obama. I was reticent about going because I have no more interest in politics, like you, years ago I was enamored w/right wing politics and have “moved to another nation”, but what the heck, he was paying. After the movie we discussed what impacted us about it, feeling unenlightened, that I had no great prophetic insight that he was looking for and what I shared was that I was struck by how much the absense of a Father can impact ones life and how it can effect one’s entire life. So maybe that was what God really wanted to share with me about that movie after all and pray about this very thing for Obama.
Thx Jeanne. I love your heart:)
I have always had a heart for Obama. I think he has been so unfairly looked upon and lied about. He obviously has a heart for real people. I don’t know if he is a muslim, people say that, I see no proof of it, does it matter? He CARES!! I don’t want to make this political but I can’t help but compare him to his opponent in this election. Does it matter that Romney belongs to a cult religion? He obviously does NOT care about people, my spirit screams every time I even see him!! And of course God loves him too!
Pam,
Thx for reading. I just wanted to reiterate that this is not an article about Barack Obama the politician, but Barack Obama the person. The Father’s heart would remain the same for him regardless if he liked people or not.
I am talking about the person Jamal. I think it very strange that you let stand the hateful words of Pauline without a word of the judgmental hate coming from her mouth. This is all about the person, not the politician. A person who has been lied about constantly and hated for no good reason. Sorry, but when I see people being treated that way, I rise up to defend. It is not not right and it certainly isn’t Christ-like!
The scenario that transpires in this “love story” is beyond the ability to question. For Jamal to have had the conversation with Father, and then put it on the back burner, and then for it to have been brought up again is astounding. Then to have received the email inviting him to the White House, this in its self is off the charts. But wait there is more, to have the spokesman voice the concerns of Barack about fatherhood, this is beyond astounding, but wait, it gets better, to see that Father “just wants to be his dad”, this is deeply profound.
Please allow this to marinate in your heart of hearts, maybe even ask Father, “does this go for me also”? Yes a thousand times, a zillion times yes it does! To know of this love, this devotion, this compassion, and it is for you….yes YOU, and the next person you see.
Father isn’t a respecter of people, His love is for one and all. May we more fully embrace this “transformational” (not a real word) love is a game changer, a deal breaker, and is truly life enhancing.
Jesus Christ is the reality of Life, and Love. He is the personification of Life and Love, and He dwells within each of us. May we have eyes to see, and hearts that are softened to embrace the One who is Love.
Well said Jim!
Thanks so much for the reminder of the love the Father has for him. I will pray he comes to know Father in a real and very personal way that only God can reveal to him.. You are HIS hands, feet, voice and love that comes from the Father… Well done… I pray a young man can stop running and searching aimlessly. I pray he finds the place where he belongs….and his identity in Father, Son & Holy Spirit…
I join you in this prayer Angie. Thx.
Thank you for writing this Jamal.
It was my pleasure to speak of His limitless love!
Hi Jamal and thanks for sharing this beautiful revelation of God’s love with us. It gave me the Holy Spirit chills reading it!
“I just want to be his Dad” — How beautiful and how simple is that?
“the President has a deep void in his life that he is very open about sharing..”
Wow, that nearly knocked my socks off as well when I came to that paragraph! Incredible how God so enjoys teaching us!
While reading your post, I was reminded of these verses that describe this incredible love that God has for his creation:
“… but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
“Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”
I too am guilty of getting caught up in the right wing/political stuff — (I still have my blood pressure go up too many times watching news, especially over the last few weeks with the conventions). I do think that this is something we believers really need to pray about and guard our hearts from. I have been making an effort over the past year to actually go on a media fasts and just shut if off, as it has a way of really stirring up some emotions in me that I don’t like! I feel so much better when I don’t waste my time focusing on this stuff, but I also notice how easy it is to be drawn back into the drama!
I was thinking about Obama’s childhood and how sad it was for him to grow up without a father to love – and to love him back. To add even more heartache, he was sent back from Indonesia at the age of 10 to live with his grandparents while his mother, adoptive father, and baby sister stayed behind in Indonesia. (How does a child process that?) — And then to finally get to meet his biological father who his heart longed for – to meet him for the first time at age 10. Can you imagine how excited he was? Obama Sr. took young 10 year old Obama to a concert that day, and then Obama never saw him again. (Again, how does a little child process that?) It’s heartbreaking to think about how rejected he must have felt and how he kept hoping and hoping his father would love him and return again. I’m sure he never thought that this would have been the first and last time, the only time he would see him. Very heartbreaking, isn’t it? Only God can fill all these empty spaces in his heart, and I do pray for our president that he will come to know this love that our heavenly Father has for him.
You said, “Before you engage in and spew harsh political rhetoric this election season, please know that this person, Barack Obama, is deeply loved, cherished, and treasured by a Father who also loves you just as deeply. He is loved with a love that is unmeasurable. Just know that before you speak.”
Thank you for this reminder to live as a child of the Light. I especially need this today!
Your friend in Jesus,
Alissa
Alissa, that was a beautiful comment. We all have or have had some of those empty places that only God can fill. We would all do well to look upon all as our Father see’s them.
Alissa,
Beautiful comment sister. Thanks for your openness. I appreciate you sharing a bit more of his history here as well. May the love of Christ fill every void and wound.
Wow – Thanks Jamal for sharing.
This communicates volumes to my heart. I have never known my biological father and I didn’t know the effects of this until now when I have to be father to my children and play the role to others. having no experience of actively being fathered, I am only left with relying on the Father to the fatherless (Psalm 68:5)- what a Love?
Amen Maina, what a love!
YEP!!!!! That’s the Jamal I met and fell in love with at Searching Together. What he has shared here so succinctly, and beautifully sums up so much Biblical Revelation of the heart of God, as a Father, lover, and Creator. This is about the simplicity of what God was hoping for in frustrating His own Creation. This is about the Creator of the old creation becoming the progenitor of A New and Everlasting Creation, one born of a woman – one born of Life Itself!
Love!
Jay
I love you Jay. I saw His heart of love all over you at Searching Together. I hope you are doing well these days brother.
Amen, Jay!
In Love!
I am not American I’m Tanzanian and i dont even know how i ended up on this page but the side of God that i have seen thru this story has left me flabbergasted… He doesnt love like we do, this is what it means when we say the Love of the father is Amazing… Bless you brother
Mama Vee
Welcome to the blog. I am glad that this account of love has left you flabbergasted. It has done the same for me as well:) Blessings to you sister.
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34, 35 NIV)
I generally detest politics. It has made me cynical when I am generally an optimistic person and I sort of resent politics for that. It gives me no choice.
Thanks for this reminder. I confess I have not prayed for my president as I am commanded to do. Forgive me, Lord. Now my prayer for Obama will simply be, “Father in Heaven, break into President Obama’s heart and let him understand that You desire to be his Father. Amen.”
And may the Church rise up in America, regardless of which (relatively insignificant) leader is at the helm.
The Church is the true voice and God’s chosen vessel for bringing real change to the nation! And it is God’s divine intention to do so! (Ephesians 3:10)
Praising my Savior,
Jim Spelman
Amen Jim!
Jamal,
The heart of our Lord is uncomprehendingly beautiful & lovely. Thank you for sharing your experience & expressing the Lord’s love, & especially for opening up to us all. Your humbleness in revealing your doubts & worries about what others think of you & your obedience in just trusting in Him & opening your mouth anyway is so encouraging for us to see. I wonder if we can all relate to this, & hope that as His body, we will all be given more & more opportunities to trust in Him and to be immediately & truly open to our brothers & sisters & stand with each other as the Lord reveals more & more of His heart with His Church. Praying with you that Obama will come to know our Father as his own.
~ Kim
Gainesville, FL
p.s. I want to share your blog…
Kim,
Thanks for your words of encouragement sister. Please feel free to share this blog as you are led.
Blessings to you sister:)
Jamal,
I have a suspicion – and I could be wrong – but I suspect that you got all the way to the White House and didn’t speak to Barack and so you think that’s all the Lord was doing – but I don’t think this is over yet. I think – you still have a message to deliver to the President
I love this story, anyway. Back in 2007, I had a similar (but altogether different) encounter about Obama. I vehemently was praying, before the primaries really started, that this guy Obama would not get elected. He seemed so dangerously pro-abortion to me and yet I could feel a power behind him, and thought, “oh my word, no, this can’t happen.” So I was praying, asking God, “Please do not let this man get elected” and my big upset occured when the Lord replied to me, “What if I have chosen him?”
I chewed on that for a while. That messed with my theology, actually, because I didn’t think God would choose a pro-abortion candidate nor did I think God would dissuade me from praying about who would get elected and claim “divine choice” over his peoples’ prayers. But I honestly felt the Lord had spoken to me.
For the rest of the fall and winter, and then into the Spring of 2008, I wrestled with the Lord about that, and had dreams, and wrestled, and finally concluded Obama was going to win the election and God was pleased with this idea.
This was no longer a political thing for me. I was just intrigued by whatever God was up to at that point. It was wild watching my friends brand me as a heretic, not for SUPPORTING Obama politically (because I didn’t) but for telling them I believed God has chosen to appoint Obama as President. While my friends were fasting and weeping and praying Obama wouldn’t be elected, I sat back and watched the election results while eating popcorn. Anyway, thanks for giving me another glimpse on what God is up to in this man’s life.
I have to second your word from the Lord. Over the last year God has told me over and over that the “direction America is heading” is all part of his plan. Amid all the chaos of elections and people talking to me about politics, red in the face with anger, I sit back, breathe deep, and have a peace that things are going exactly as they should.
Thanks for sharing. It is encouraging to hear from someone else who feels this way and to know I’m not as crazy as I feel sometimes.
Great comment Heather. Thanks for reading, sharing, and commenting. I appreciate your heart greatly!
Hello I am new to this blog and I have so much to add, I just hope I can keep it pithy. First I am a conservative who does plan on voting for Mitt Romney. I notice in your post you stated that politics has very little influence now because of your geographical area, which is totally understandable. I do not have a problem with your article as whole, it is a worthy and spiritual discipline to pray and love our president. I just have one question for you. If you were in the United States and were to vote, who would you vote for? The second, when you look at Mitt Romney do you have the same overwhelming affectionate reaction?
Carlos,
Thanks for your comment, and welcome to the blog. You have asked some great questions. Regarding my geographical location, I actually reside in Tennessee.
As far as Mitt Romney is concerned, I do not have the same overwhelming affectionate reaction. Please understand, however, that this has nothing to do with Mitt Romney himself. I know our Father, who loves Barack Obama very affectionately, also loves Mitt Romney this way as well. The reason I do not feel this way about him is because the Lord has not given me this perspective about him at this point in time. I don’t know why. I did not choose to have a heart change about Barack Obama. I was not trying to pray for him or love him. Father simply gave me His heart for him. When we live by Christ’s divine life, it is the life of God in us that acts accordingly in His ways and times. I hope that makes sense.
Hi Jamal! First, I so appreciate the call to love all, including our President, as Christ loves all and as He so compellingly taught us to do in His sermon on the mount. Also, John reminds us in I John 4:8 that he that does not love does not know God; strong language repIete with truth. I did though have some discomfiture in spirit as you related the ‘Father’s’ words; “I want to be his dad”. The truth is, as we learn in Psalm 68:5 that God IS “a father of the fatherless.” As we well know, He is the Most High God and though he calls, He does not beg. Indeed Jesus never approached any and asked that they might come and follow; instead He approached them directly and said; “come” and they dropped their nets and obeyed. In Numbers 23:19 we are reminded that when God speaks He will bring His edicts and desires to pass. Our God is the great “I Am” and therefore doesn’t ‘wish’ this or ‘want’ that. When He calls, His sheep hear His voice and He knows them and they follow Him (Jn 10:27). Let’s take to heart that God does not stand affably by hoping against hope that maybe, just maybe, we’ll ‘let’ Him be our Father. I do pray, though, Jamal that like Paul in Acts 24, you will get the awesome oppirtunity to present the Gospel to the leader of this nation, as Paul did Felix, and that he (unlike Felix) will turn and follow the King of Kings and bow before the Father.
Good answer Jamal. Keep hearing the Father’s voice and obeying. Keep it simple, keep on beholding the Lamb of God. Each of us must know the measure of faith or grace that the Lord has given to us and minister within that.
I’m actually afraid that Obama may never had felt how ugly Christians can be until he took office; I can’t imagine how that man must deal with the flood of slander that he endures about his person, almost all of it coming from the body of Christ. Can you imagine his vantage point on American Christianity from where he is sitting, seeing so much stuff circulating about him being the “antiChrist” and that he’s a muslim and on and on? I pray he somehow still looks to Jesus in the midst of the attack of the majority church upon his heart.
Today, I stumbled across this song/video of Michael W. Smith. I thought I’d post it as it speaks of the topic/the heart of this thread.
In it, Michael testifies to the “massive tsunami revelation” that God gave him — ““I just want to be your dad”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7Lpk-_y0BY&feature=related
(from 2:38 in the video)
… “The extravagant love of God. You know they call that story the prodigal son story. I think it should be called the parable of the extravagant father. Because he is extravagant, man! His love is mind boggling. It blows your mind that the God of the universe wants to be friends with us.
So every day I wake up, I go – I’m in awe, it takes my breath away – and I can still look at myself in the mirror. There was a time that I couldn’t. I was in performance mode so much of my life trying to do all the right things.
Then one day it hit me – like a massive tsunami revelation – that my daddy in heaven said – ‘Hey Smitty W – not only do I love you but I’m extremely fond of you. I’m so fond of you – I just want to be your dad. Let me in. Let me be your daddy.’
I wept. It took my breath away.
I haven’t been the same since
Because I know who I am
That’s the message guys, that’s the message…”
Hi Jamal,
Thankyou for your article about Barack Obama, it made my spirit jump with joy. One of the mystery’s that has recently been revealed to my spirit is that (just as you said in your article) it is not I but Christ that lives in me and therefore it is not I but God who loves everyone. The thought that came into my mind was, yes, even Tony Blair! I pray that I would would have Gods love for this man and all those like him. Thankyou again for your blog which witnesses to me greatly.
Blessings Brother
Jonathan,
Thanks for your comment. I am very glad to know that this testimony of the love of Christ has resonated and encouraged your spirit. Blessings to you brother.
Reading this article, along with a teaching one of the women did in our church, has challenged me to ask myself some general questions.
1. Do I really understand the great love that the Father of our Lord Jesus has for all people? He loved ME while I was still sinning.
2. How do I seperate my personal feelings about a person (not just the President) to be able to have the Father’s heart for that person or a group of people? (as we pray for the lost and for specific people to know the Father’s love–our hearts for the lost has to change)
Joyce,
Welcome to the blog, and thanks for your comment here. I know exactly what you mean. The more we realize how much we’re truly loved, the more we are able to express this love to those who need His love. This is why Paul the apostle prays that the saints in Ephesus would know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge. May we truly know this love in the deepest places of our being.
So Im a little late in the game on reading this blog post, but so glad I did. The Father’s deep love never ceases to amaze me. Im so glad He is the one advancing our kingdom as He increases in us and we do not have to look to politics.
Amen Amy. Thanks for coming by the blog, and for your comment. I too am amazed at the Father’s unrelenting love. Blessings to you:)
I found your blog through my close friend Nicole (after you interviewed her), and I confess, I have been all over it, reading everything up. You’ve so spoken to my Spirit. This post just made me praise Jesus- what a testimony (more like a bunch of testimonies in one post!). I am also a reformed political junkie, and I cringe at how I looked at war, and our “enemies”, and how somehow I thought that God only had a heart for America, and not the rest of the world, the rest of humanity? I just hope we can see with His eyes, and love with His heart. Thanks for this (and all the rest of the awesome content on this blog!)
Carrington,
Thanks so much for your kind words, and welcome to the blog. Your comment greatly encouraged me today. I am very glad to know that you have been encouraged through the articles posted here. I am also encouraged to know that the Lord is giving many people His heart and eyes to see the world through. Many blessings to you on your journey, and I look forward to dialoguing with you here in the future.