His Great Love

When I was young, I longed to know
the depth of love God had for me.
A son was I, whose father left;
Of balls, or cars, he had no part;
I felt a void within my heart,
And thought what love could fill that void
and read,
                “For God so Loved the World,
                He gave his Only Son,”
                                                     and awed.
I reached, I grasped, and thought I felt
the depth and breadth of His great love.

And then as father of a son, I sensed
the depth of love God had for me.
I served, I taught, I loved, I felt
The love a father has for son:
a warmth that rises like the sun.
“How hard it’d be to loose this warmth,”
I thought,
                “For God so Loved the World,
                He gave his Only Son,”
                                                     and awed.
I reached, I grasped, and thought I felt
the depth and breadth of His great love.

And then God asked of me the thing
Few parents dare to even think:
To try my faith, He asked me plain
To give to Him my precious son.
In shock I said, “Thy will be done”
And now today I reel in pain
and read,
                “For God so Loved the World,
                He gave his Only Son,”
                                                     and weep,
For through this pain I feel I know
the depth and breadth of His great love.

And yet I reach and grasp again,
For though I lost my precious son,
I have yet other sons to teach;
Of balls and cars I still I have part
To fill a void within my heart;
But God had only one to give.
I think,
                “For God so Loved the World,
                He gave his Only Son,”
                                                     and weep,
For through my pain I know in part
the depth and breadth of His great love.