When I Can’t Call Him Daddy (Part 1)

Does the idea of calling God “Daddy” seem offensive to you?

I don’t blame you! When I first started having these conversations with God where He addressed me as “Baby Girl” or “Little One,” referring to Himself as “Daddy,” MANY people told me that it seems weird, creepy or even disturbing.

I was told that the term daddy reminded some people of bratty entitled little kids, usually girls, who call their dads “Daddy” and usually in a whiny tone of voice to manipulate their dad into giving them what they want.

I was told that God is Holy and Righteous, so calling Him “Daddy” brings Him down to our level. I was told it was therefore disrespectful to refer to Him as “Daddy.”

I was reminded repeatedly that at least in America, the younger generations tend to view the term “daddy” as a sexual slang term. Many young people who heard me refer to God as Daddy lifted an eyebrow and said, “That’s WEIRD. You probably shouldn’t say that.”

So many people found it odd that I decided to look into if it was OK to address God as Daddy. I didn’t want to be disrespectful or overly casual with Him despite the firm impression that this was how He was revealing Himself to me. I also didn’t want to talk about God in a way that would offend or trip others up in their faith. I Googled and found that everyone who had issues with the title of Daddy had a valid point. Our society has perverted the original meaning of the term Daddy.

When Jesus called God “Abba” Father in Mark 14:36, He wasn’t a bratty little child addressing His dad to manipulate Him. He wasn’t referring to Him in a crude way, and He wasn’t minimizing God’s position as the God of the universe. He was addressing Him with the intimacy of a child addressing His Father.

The word abba, often paired with the word father in Aramaic signifies a close, personal relationship reflecting the affection and trust a child has for their father. The word abba also includes a profound sense of submission and obedience to the Father. When I address God as Daddy or sense He is addressing Himself to me in that way, I am coming to Him as a child.

Matthew 18:3 says that unless we come to God as a child, we cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. I don’t think that means unless we call Him Daddy, but I do think our heart posture should come to Him as such. When you have a loving father, as a young child, you ADORE him! You run to him with open arms! You know that you are safe in his arms, but you also know that when he says no, you are to respect him.

There is reverence a young child should have for their father. When a young child is reprimanded by their daddy, they get sad because they feel bad. They say they are sorry, but when their dad opens his arms to hug them and say, “It’s ok, I forgive you,” they immediately throw their arms around his neck and say, “I love you!” They don’t question if their dad still loves them because he was mad about something. They are relieved he forgave them, and move on with their life.

There is so much about childlike faith and approaching God as a child that I have grown to embrace and cherish over the past two years. A little over a year ago, I woke up at 2:15 AM but never got around to reading the Word because I needed to talk to God first.

I asked Him why sometimes when I come to Him I'm able to freely call Him "Daddy," sometimes I start out with "Dad," and sometimes the most endearing thing I can say is "Dear heavenly Father?" which was the only way I ever greeted Him before that first "Baby Girl" letter He gave me in 2022.

He said, "when you freely call Me Daddy you are aware of 5 things:

1. You're aware that I'm not only your Father, but that I intimately know you and deeply love you.

2. You don't just see yourself as my child, but my tender-hearted little one who needs the safety of her daddy's embrace.

3. When you call me Daddy, you're coming to me with a clean conscience, a pure heart and clean hands. You're not hiding anything.

4. You're excited to talk to Me.

5. You understand that I'm just as excited to talk to you.

If you ever feel a pause in your spirit when you go to address Me as Daddy, ask yourself:

1. Am I coming with the awareness that I am intimately known and deeply loved?

2. Are there things in my life that I am still trying to handle on my own, or am I aware that I wasn't created to handle things on my own and I need God's involvement in every area of life?

3. Am I walking in right-standing with God or are there areas of my life where I have impure motives, unaddressed sin, disobedience or outright rebellion? Is there anything I'm consciously or subconsciously keeping from God?

4. Am I excited for the opportunity to talk to Him?

5. Do I believe that He is excited to hear from me?"

Sometimes calling God Daddy feels weird, but when it does, I feel compelled to ask myself why? After hearing His explanation, why would I ever want to address Him as anything less than Daddy? If I can’t come to Him with that kind of vulnerability, I ask myself if something is missing in my walk with Him that needs to be addressed.