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The Importance of Seeing God as a Caring Father: Christianity Is About Family
Some years back I read a book about four UK tough guys who had become Christians. Violence was an accepted part of their everyday lives. Arthur White, one of the four, was a champion weight lifter who worked as a Club bouncer, Security Guard, and Minder. (Body Guard) Arthur began playing around with drugs and cheating on his wife. His internal state deteriorated until one day while on holiday on the Spanish coast, with a girl friend, Arthur decided to end it all by walking out into the sea and not coming back.
As he waded into the water a voice called his name. “Who are you?” he asked. “I am your Father,” came the reply. Arthur rudely replied, “You are not my Father, my Father is dead.” (Losing his father was a sad loss for him) It was not the first time he had heard his name called in this fashion. During a fight outside a night Club, Arthur was about to cut a mans ear off with the knife he always carried, when a voice spoke saying, “don’t do it Arthur.”
Both times the voice was enough to dissuade him from his intention. Eventually Arthur found Christ as Saviour, and joined the three other previous hardcases, as a team touring England using weightlifting as a drawcard, and speaking about what Jesus Christ had done for them. A big part of their Ministry is Prison visitation.