Thank God He Loves Prodigals
Do you love the story of the prodigal son in Luke 15 as much as I do? It is a rare human who does not appreciate this picture of the Father loving and receiving His wayward, rebellious, and dare I say somewhat stupid son the moment he repents.
I love that there were no questions asked, no conditions imposed, no penance required; just a fierce "shut up and get into my arms" welcome. This is a very clear picture of what the Bible tells us in Psalm 103 (NLT).
8 The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
9 He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever.
10 He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.
11 For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.
12 He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.
13 The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him.
14 For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust.
One of the most common tactics of the enemy against us is condemnation- convincing us that we are not good enough or that God is somehow disappointed in us. His goal is to make us feel unworthy so we will not stand up and be who we are in Christ- His beloved sons and daughters. I would say how ridiculous that is but I have fallen for it at times as well. The enemy is subtle and uses a grain of truth to twist into his lie.
My prodigal story is very similar to this young son in the Bible except I wasn’t so young. I should have known better. I was angry and bitter because I did not think God saw me or cared. My life was filled with unending hardship and disappointment and I let myself be convinced there was just something about me God did not like. So, I ventured out on my own in a fit of rebellion to see if I could find some happiness. Can anyone relate?
During this short time I ignored God, got divorced, messed up my relationship with my kids, married a non-Christian, and ended up flat on my back in the hospital with a final-stage cancer diagnosis. Wow, what a great job I did running my own life.
As I lay there in the hospital my thought process was the same as his. Surely anything God may have for me is better than this. I did not want to die so as I came to my senses (thank God), I ran back to my heavenly father, told Him how sorry I was, and asked Him to take me back. Guess what- He did- immediately and without condition or question. He wrapped His arms of comfort around me and I knew it would be all right. His Word rose up in me just like it had in years past. His Spirit and Word had never left.
This is the God we serve. We need only look at some of the characters in the Bible and how badly they messed up and were still used by God. There is lots of hope for you. If you have experienced any kind of condemnation let me encourage you to tell the devil to shut up. Your heavenly Father's love for you is so great it cannot be measured. If you have been away from him or rebellious in any way, look at it as a child throwing a three-minute tantrum. When it's over the parent generally looks at the child and says, "Are you done? " Then they go on with their day as planned. My two years were a mere few minutes in God's time.
No parent would hold a grudge against their child for having a temporary fit. Do we really think God would? He is the best father of all. Please read through the account in Luke 15 and picture yourself in the embrace of your Father God. I am so thankful that I got to see this part of Him. I now know how much I am loved and I look at God, Jesus, and life in a whole new way.
May I leave you with a song recommendation? I know it was not written to be a Christian song but when I first heard it I almost cried because I heard Jesus singing over me. It is Ruelle, Carry You. I trust you will be blessed.
In Christ, Marion
