At the end of each year, we ask our students which teachings really impacted them. One answer we hear continually is Kevin Rusack’s (founder of Kairos) talk on The Father Heart of God. This year we asked some of our students to briefly tell us what they had learned. Here are their responses.
“For me to say that this teaching about the Father Heart of God was good would be an understatement. The truth is that God used it to change my thoughts and beliefs about who God is as my Father. In turn, that has changed my life. I look back to see how I compared my earthly father to my Heavenly Father. Although that’s not always bad, I now realize how false of a picture that can be at times. I now view my Heavenly Father as completely different than my father on earth in many ways. He’s the perfect Father, holy, and always desiring me to draw into intimacy with him. My Father is so personal and relational with me and that is constant. He was highly intentional in choosing me to be His child. Even the simple truth of Him being inclined to me despite my unworthiness and feelings of inadequacy at times, has been a new profound reality to me. I am incredibly thankful for the impact that God made on me through the teaching of the Father Heart of God!”
“Before Kairos, the Father Heart of God was never something that I really thought about or understood. After learning about the Father Heart of God, my view of my Heavenly Father is so much richer than before. I understand better now how God sees us. He is inclined to us, He delights in us, He wants to spend time with us, and He likes us. God didn’t begrudgingly save me only to keep me at arm’s length, but He adopted me so that He could call me His own. He delights not because of anything that I do but because of who He is. I feel like these truths have brought me closer to God by helping me to better understand in my heart who God is and how He thinks about me. I never have to feel like I have to work for His love or fight for His attention. He is my perfect father, and He is always there for me.”
“The teaching on the Father Heart of God was both eye opening and rewarding As we learn God has ultimately adopted us through the sacrifice of his son Jesus Christ, it paints the foundation of the biblical understanding of God’s first love. When God created Adam and Eve in Genesis, we fell short of the glory of God. We fell into an individualized mentality that subjects God’s divine will in a conniving way. What’s more fascinating about His love is His sacrificial love. He continues to pursue us in adoption. As we were deep in our sin, and we so deserved the crucifixion God said, “No I will send my son because I want you.” The Father Heart of God is the ultimate picture of God’s character. He loves us!”
“I realized how much God delights in me. I am fully known by Him, and He likes me! I know that He really cares about me. God will take care of me and provide what I need. Therefore, I can confidently expect the best, and I can seek and delight in Him as well. I know that His love precedes performance: I don’t need to prove anything to Him. Thus, I can choose to do things with God and not for God. The biggest take away for me would be this: ‘I know that I am loved, adopted forgiven and free, and that I have nothing else to prove.”
“Kevin Rusack spoke on the Father Heart of God. I took his teaching to heart. Seeing God as the Father is not my common mindset. I used to think of God as being the condescending judge that will scrutinize every action. This is a horrible representation of how the Father sees His children. When He looks at us, He doesn’t see a criminal awaiting conviction. Instead, God sees His perfect son Jesus when He gazes upon us even though we are impure. Not only does the Father love us, He likes us and enjoys us as His children. All we must do is accept His love.”
