How Deep the Father’s Love

As an exhausted group of dads and their somewhat tired children huddled in the cozy glow of the Shelter to escape the rain after a day of activity & time together, Derek Yoder shared from 1 Corinthians 13 and a message from his heart. He tried to explain the overwhelming new, protective love he felt the first moment he saw his daughter, the pain he experienced when seeing her injured, and the joy in spending time with her and watching her grow. This is nothing, he reminded the group, compared to God’s love for each of us.  Then, the Shelter filled with 28 voices singing a beautifully improvised rendition of “How Deep the Father’s Love,” led by Ruskin, with children worshipping alongside their fathers, in the midst of their Father.

Nine families gathered for Dads & Kids Weekend in October and made the weekend a fun, memorable bonding experience! The adventurous group braved a night hike, canoed in the fall morning mist, and dueled at the ping pong table. During a break in the rain, a clatter of hammers, wire nails, pine boards, and little voices echoed from the Shelter Campsites as the group assembled birdhouses to take home, a memento from a  weekend spent building something much bigger.​