Abandoned before he was born. Fatherless his entire life. Then He met God.

The first bit of fatherly advice he got from his Heavenly Father was to forgive his earthly dad. He didn’t want to but he did.

He chose to forgive him for abandoning him which was the beginning of his healing journey. Today, he’s grateful for his father’s absence because of what God has done through him because of it.

John Smithbaker is the founder of Fathers in the Field and the author of The Great American Rescue. To connect a fatherless boy with a consistent, godly mentor or to find out how your church can help defend the cause of the fatherless go to Fathersinthefield.com.