A Father's Letter

In November 1991, Jerry Jenkins wrote a bizarre true story about a man awakened in the middle of the night by a phone call. He was groggy. The girl on the other end was weeping. “Daddy,” she said, “I’m pregnant.”

Though stunned beyond belief, he forgave her and prayed with her. The next day he and his wife wrote her two letters of counsel and love. Three days later the man received another phone call. His daughter was shocked by the letters.

She was not the one who had called earlier. . . . Apparently some other girl had dialed a wrong number. “These letters are my treasure,” the daughter later said, “real love letters written by a godly father who never imagined he would have to write them to his own daughter.”

Here are a few excerpts: Part of me seemed to die last night. Not because of what it means to me as much as what it means to you. You were free to make all kinds of choices. Now you are shut up to a few, and none of them to your liking.

But God will see you-and us-through. Though I weep inside, I can’t condemn you, because I sin too. Your transgression here is no worse than mine. It’s just different.

Even if my heart did not shout out to love and defend and protect you-as it does-the New Testament tells me I can’t take forgiveness myself and withhold it from others. We think of sin as acts. But sin is a package, an attitude that expresses itself in different ways and to different degrees.

But it all comes from the same sin package you inherited through us. Christ is the only difference. God forgives this sin as well as others-really forgives and cleanses. David was a man of God when he went into his experience with Bathsheba and in the grace of God he came out a man of God.

And his sin included murder! Satan has no doubt tried to tell you that this affects your standing before God.

It doesn’t, but it will affect your relationship till you bring the whole matter to Him. There will be a coolness, a separation, an estrangement, until you open the problem by confessing and asking forgiveness. I will not reproach you or [your boyfriend]. I will not even dare to look down at you in my innermost heart, but it is not because the issue doesn’t matter.

The responsibility is his no less than yours. This is not an ideal basis for marriage. You want a husband who takes you by choice. But if you face the issue and God so leads, He could build a solid marriage.

We stand ready to do whatever we can. We’re praying much. We love you more than I can say. And respect you, too, as always.

Saturday I was very downcast. I tried to sing as I worked outside, and then, increasingly, I seemed to see a calm and loving face I knew was Jesus.

It was no vision-I didn’t see details-but it was a strong reminder that He is with us and waiting for us to remember this. He loves us and will help us through, especially you. It’s great to know Jesus is walking with you. While we can’t say that God causes failures, He does permit them, and I think it’s clear He uses them to build character and beauty that we’d never have without them.

Remember, God’s love is in even this, maybe especially in this. We’re glad that in a measure, at least, we can help the daughter we love so much. This is a day of testing, but hold our ground we must.

God will give us the victory. That’s wonderful. We’re looking forward to your being at home. Love, Dad.