My niece Amber was driving home with her two children after spending a few days at the lake with her sister-in-law. Near the end of the five-hour drive, her eight-year-old daughter Liv said, “I can’t wait to get home. I miss Daddy so much.”

When Amber turned down her street, she remotely opened the garage door to signal to her husband Josh that they were almost home. As soon as she stopped the car, Liv raced out to hug her dad.

Amber said that it never crossed her mind to first have Liv take out her bags and clean the car before meeting her dad. There would be time for that. And as much as her husband loves to unpack luggage as soon as a trip ends, his mind was on nothing other than greeting his family.

What a picture that creates of our Heavenly Father’s love for us. God is not standing and waiting for us to clean up the baggage we’ve been carrying. He doesn’t wait for us to get everything right and in order before we’re allowed to approach Him. He chose to lavish His love on us and to call us His children.

And what about the baggage? Oh, there’s time for that, and God will take the lead in clearing up the stuff we’ve been carrying. Jesus’ words recorded in Matthew 11:28 say, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”

Ronny Michel can be reached at rmichel@rtconline.com