A Wedding Poem: The Perfect Father

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Today our family celebrated the wedding of our daughter, Tiffany, to our new son, Zach.  They both worked tirelessly for a beautiful wedding and it was such a privilege to see them united in Christ. I wanted to share a little piece of the wedding ceremony with you.

I asked permission from my awesome hubby to share a poem he wrote to Tiffany.

Lately it seems there sure are many “loser dads” in our society. The media portrays example after example in movies and sitcoms of fathers who don’t care about their children or providing for them. For those of our readers who are unfamiliar with our family’s story, you may want to click over there and read for a minute or two.

The cliff notes version is that God greatly redeemed my husband and me when He joined the two of us together in marriage.  Matt had a daughter from his previous marriage and over 14 years ago when we met, one of the attractions I had to Matt was that he obviously, dearly loved his daughter. In spite of mistakes he had made in his first marriage and in spite of his faults, his heart’s desire was to be a great Daddy to his little girl. With determination and perseverance, God so graciously gave him the strength and ability to do so. I love how God then weaved the relationship of Tiffany and me.

And so today we celebrated a very momentous occasion on many levels. For any of those dads out there who feel like the odds are stacked against you to be a great Daddy or any of those moms who need to know that God works in incredible ways , I’m sharing my husband’s words read to his daughter on her wedding day, A Wedding Poem: The Perfect Father.

The Perfect Father

Ever since I was a little boy
I’d often sit and dream of the day
When I would hold my own bundle of joy
Wrapped in my arms in a gentle, loving way

I would be a perfect dad, a shining knight
Her hero in the time of storm
Always being there to say good night
And the first to greet her each morn

But I let down my guard and yielded to sin
Falling in a trap and tangled in pride
And with a closed heart I reasoned within
That the grass was greener on the other side

The color soon faded and then came remorse
I gave up so much at such a great cost
I reaped what I sowed and set my own course
But my little girl still loved me; all hope was not lost

My life scraped bottom; to my senses I came
And that hope within me opened my eyes
Then the Lord forgave all the guilt and shame
I opened my heart, and soon realized

The gift of grace I received as a youth
Took on a new meaning in this circumstance
He welcomed me back with mercy and truth
My father had given me a second chance

Yet through those difficult, wandering years
My devotion to you stayed as it should
In my mistakes and failures, he calmed my fears
For what began as evil, God turned to good

As I stand here now, about to give you away
I clearly remember the day you were born
I was finally a daddy; what a long-awaited day
I held you so close that cold wintry morn

These arms that held you in a gentle way
And this heart that filled with eternal love
Are not the same as they were that day
They’ve been renewed by the perfect Father above

Now the time has come to begin your new life
I release your care into another man’s hand
I pray your love will abound without strife
But this one thing always understand

Though I often fell short and missed the mark
Or my armor, at times, may have been dim
Sometimes this hero was afraid in the dark
I’m thankful you had protection with Him

Being your daddy has been my greatest joy
I am blessed to stand here at your side
You’ve fulfilled the dream I had as a boy
And in my heart you will always abide.

-by Matthew Wojnarowski

Thank you, my love, for being an exceptional father, both to your daughter, to mine, and to the Woj tribe God has graciously given us. You bless me greatly with your willingness to share your past mistakes, God’s redemption, and our blessed life together. Thank you for continually pointing me to the Heavenly Father who is perfect. I love you with all my heart.