Excitement filled the air. As we entered her classroom, camaraderie met us. Each of her classmates also had both parents there, hovering, smiling, and sighing. After a few moments of picture taking, the principal sweetly escorted all the parents to a “Boo-Hoo Breakfast.” The social gathering was a very polite attempt to remove us from the classroom and forestall our tears.

After school, Julianna kept us spellbound as she raved about the events of the day. She loved it! When I asked her about her lunch and if she ate it, she said (and I quote), “Well, Momma, I ate a little bit, but really this was my only time to make new friends. We had been learning so much all day that I decided to use this time to introduce myself to people. I made a new friend, Berlynn. “ Jason looked over at me and whispered, “That would be your child.”

I asked Julianna why she chose Berlynn. She smiled and said, “She had a pretty face (my heart sank for a moment) and I watched the way she acted and she looked like she might have a good heart.” Whew, my first five years with her were not in vain.

Every day is a new adventure. We’ve laughed as Julianna told how funny it was when Mrs. Bailey tried to teach with the hiccups, and we’ve prayed for the kids who had gotten in trouble. Each day when we drop her off, we pray that she will be a little ambassador for Him. I think I’m going to like my new job as a kindergartner’s mom. I’m learning a lot.

I asked her what she meant by “Daddy of God”. She said, “You know, mommy, because daddy has a heart like Jesus.”

She didn’t see the tears of thankfulness that welled up in my eyes. I just smiled and said, “You are absolutely right.”

As a daughter, I know the importance of a strong, godly father who shaped me at a very early age. His love for the Word of God came through in our bedtime stories, our family devotions, our discipline, our mealtime conversations and our after church discussions.

It was my father who took me out on my first date when I was 16 and taught me how a real gentleman would treat me. It was my father who constantly affirmed me and was my biggest fan. It was my father who told me, “Kimberly, you can do anything you set your mind to.” It was my father who lived out the Word of God and taught me the way of salvation. It was my father who was the hands and feet of Jesus in our house. He was a “Daddy of God.”

To all of you “Daddies of God” and future “Daddies of God”, never forget that you represent Jesus. When you have a heart like His, it touches all of us.