Who Are You?

Guest Post by Deena Adams

“…“A man had two sons. The younger son told his father, ‘I want my share of your estate now before you die.’ So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons. A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living. …When he finally came to his senses…he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him…We must celebrate with a feast, for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.’ So the party began…The older brother was angry and wouldn’t go in…His father said to him, ‘Look, dear son, you have always stayed by me, and everything I have is yours. We had to celebrate this happy day. For your brother was dead and has come back to life! He was lost, but now he is found!’”  *For the complete story, please read Luke 15:11-31 (NLT)

Have you ever been a prodigal, or the parent of one? I’ve experienced both in my life, and learned some hard lessons along the way. As I think about the young son in our passage, I’m reminded that it was a lack of patience that began his journey down a long, hard road filled with loss and harsh consequences. As the younger of the two sons, he also lacked the maturity that comes with age, as well as the maturity gained through life experiences. He had to learn lessons the hard way. 

Whether you’ve been the prodigal, or one you love, can you pinpoint the catalyst as lack of patience and/or maturity? I can.

If you’re the parent of a prodigal, you can relate to the father in this story. Maybe your child ran away from home as a teen. Maybe they left after high school graduation and never looked back. You may not know right now where they are, what they’re doing, or if they are even alive. No doubt about it, that’s hard stuff. It’s heart-breaking, gut-wrenching, pain.

The father in our focal passage is a picture of our loving, Heavenly Father. When God’s children turn away from Him, it breaks His heart, too. He desires a relationship with us, to have fellowship and intimacy as a Father and child should.

When the son comes to his senses and returns home, the father runs to him, embraces him and kisses him. He’s filled with love and compassion. This is our Heavenly Father’s heart toward us when we repent of our sin and turn back to Him. He doesn’t beat us over the head with our sin and rebellion. He throws a party and celebrates!  

God is our supreme example of how to parent a prodigal child. Leave them in God’s capable hands, pray for their hearts to turn back to the Lord, and to you, and when they come to their senses, welcome them home with arms open wide. 

There’s one more character in our story we need to consider. The older brother. This brother faithfully served his father for years. He was an obedient son, never refusing to do a single thing his father asked. We’d all love to have children like that, right? Well, the older son became so angry, he wouldn’t go in the house for the party.

Sometimes our faithful, obedient children can end up taking a backseat in our prayers,  and with our attention, when there’s a prodigal on the scene. We need to remind the obedient child of our love for them and the blessings that are theirs because they are our child.

I believe the older son was content and happy in his relationship with the father until the moment he knew the younger brother was receiving special attention. Comparison reared its ugly head and jealousy robbed the older son of his joy and contentment.

The same can be true in our walk with God. We know God loves us, and we love Him. We serve Him, we worship by using our gifts and talents for Him and are humbled by how blessed we truly are. Life is good. 

Then, we begin to look at a friend, neighbor, or co-worker who seems to have it a little better than we do. We begin to think how unfair it is that she has so much more than we do. Don’t we deserve that life too?

This is a trap of the enemy and it damages the relationships in our lives, and with the Lord. Let the Father’s response to the older son remind us just what we have as children of God.

  ‘Look, dear son, you have always stayed by me, and everything I have is yours.’ 

We are heirs of Almighty God. We are partakers of every spiritual blessing. We have no reason to ever think we are being cheated by God. We have more than we could ever deserve!

Application:

Who are you? 

Are you a prodigal child who has wandered away from God and needs to repent and turn back to Him?

Are you the parent of a prodigal child? Do you need to surrender control of your situation to God, trusting that He is a loving Father and will work things out in His time? Do you need to remind their obedient, faithful sibling of their blessings as your child?

Maybe you are the older brother. At one time you were happy and content in your relationship with the Lord, but comparison and jealousy have robbed you of your joy and contentment.

Or, you could be all three. 

Take a little internal inventory. Determine who you are in this story. Pray and ask God to help you respond to whatever He reveals to you. Turn to Him as a loving Father, running to you with open arms.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, I praise you for being so kind and loving toward me. I confess my weakness and sin. Please forgive me when I’ve turned my back on you and gone my own way. Forgive my impatience and immaturity. Help me to grow in these areas of weakness. Give me wisdom to deal with the children in my life. Help me show each of them Your love in the way I respond to them. May they truly know how much I love them, but more importantly, how much You love them. May they each love You and follow you wholeheartedly. Forgive any comparison and jealousy in my heart. Help me die to that sin, and embrace who You’ve created me to be. Help me live with a heart of gratitude for the many blessings in my life and be content, knowing I have way more than I could ever deserve. Thank you for being such a loving and forgiving Father.

Deena Adams is a pastor's wife and writer among other things. Sara met Deena recently at a Novelist's Retreat in Asheville, North Carolina and admired her dedication as a writer, a Christian woman, and friend. You can find her/follow her at:

https://deenaadams.com/

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