Bigger Than Me

My recent post, Secret Child, garnered a great deal of attention this week. By sharing it on Facebook, I knew I would reach a portion my target audience, but mostly those who are not in that population. Some, I know, were fascinated with the storyline; others have taken a genuine interest in the subject.

I don’t want anyone to get so involved in my story that they miss out on the purpose. This is about the girls and women who lack the emotional or physical presence of their biological father and promoting healthy father-daughter relationships. This is not about children who are conceived out of adultery. It’s not just about children who have absent fathers.

A fatherless daughter is a female who grew up with an unavailable, unattached or absent father. By definition, having a father in the home does not exempt a child from the effects of fatherlessness because there are instances where fathers are physically present but emotionally absent from their children. There are children who live with the devastation of discovering that someone they called dad most of their life is actually not their biological father. Father-daughter ties are often severed following divorce, imprisonment, and of course, death.  All of these cases, among many others, create wounds.

A fatherless daughter is a female who grew up with an unavailable, unattached or absent father.

Fatherlessness, unfortunately, is an epidemic in this country and the statistics prove it. In 2014, 24 percent of children lived in father-absent homes.

That staggering number only includes children with absent fathers. These children and other fatherless children become adults with denied and/or unhealed pain and when the pain is not healed, it results in major consequences. There are too many wounded sons and daughters who need to move beyond their daddy wounds.

My effort, this ministry, is bigger than me. It’s about reaching others and helping them heal, curbing longterm effects of fatherlessness. I have not overcome every obstacle and just last night, God reminded me of a chain that needs to be broken. It will take more courage, but it is necessary for my spiritual health and for the success of this ministry. I cannot take anyone completely through the process until I’ve gone through it myself and I know God is already setting things up for me.

My transparency is not to feed anyone’s hunger for gossip, but to help an unmet need.

Don’t get caught up in my story, but think about yourself, look at your family and share these posts with others who could benefit. My transparency is not to feed anyone’s hunger for gossip, but to help an unmet need. I’m Chaunte McClure, and I said that.