Can God's Love Be Real? What If My Real Dad Was Just Abusive?

In this deeply personal and vulnerable episode of The Candace Cameron Bure Podcast, host Candace welcomes Pastor Francis Chan for a six-week series exploring the profound depth of God's love. The conversation begins with Candace expressing her admiration for Francis, recalling how his preaching at Cornerstone Church profoundly impacted her spiritual journey during her teenage years. Francis shares his painful upbringing—being abandoned by his biological father, raised by his grandmother in Hong Kong, and later enduring abuse from his stepmother and father—revealing how these experiences shaped his struggle to believe in unconditional love. Despite this, he recounts how God’s faithfulness and provision throughout his life became a testament to divine love, even in the midst of trauma. The discussion shifts to the central theme of the book 'Beloved,' where Francis admits he spent his life focused on God’s holiness and judgment but never truly internalized the depth of His love. Candace relates to this struggle, noting that her own secure family background made it harder for her to grasp the supernatural nature of God’s love. They explore the tension between God’s wrath and mercy, addressing listener questions about divine anger and sovereignty, emphasizing that God’s ways are higher than ours and that mystery is part of faith. The episode closes with a call to rest in God’s love, not just as a doctrine but as a lived experience of intimacy and presence.