"How happy I am to see myself imperfect and to be in need of God's mercy." -- St Therese of Lisieux
The Story of the Prodigal Son crossed my mind this morning at work
What crossed my mind as so interesting is that the son essentially asked his
father if he could squander his life and the father just let the son go.
I don't think he was a bad father--I think he was a wise father. I think he knew that there are some
people who only learn from doing. They have to touch everything and experience everything
without even knowing that that is there goal. I think the father waited, prayed and hoped, knowing that
God does not disappoint. He waited knowing that like the
money he gave his son gets spent, the world loses its luster.
When the son finally lost everything, the one thing he remember was his father's house.
The Son remembered his roots knowing that, there is no disappointment there. That
if he made the effort (by God's grace) he could find a place there again. That even though
he abused the father and used him and deceived him, that he was still his blood, and that
no matter the bad he did--he was still good. The bottom line is that no matter the sin--no matter the damage
done, he felt that he could some how come back to the father. The father left his arms open and let the
son go. Im sure the father was in pain and he was sad and that he pleaded for his son, but he also
knew that God's ways were not his ways and that God somewhere, somehow allowed this son of his to
hurt him knowing that there was a greater purpose to come.
God has a funny way of building virtue, greater love and bringing healing to our hearts. It
does not always come packaged very pretty--sometimes he gives us a crown of thorns and well, all I
want to say to Jesus is: umm, excuse me I did not ask for this---or can you give me a crown that may
not prick as much! He gives us what we need and not what we want. So why do people walk away from God? I don't know
I myself know that the world looks pretty nice, but that look does not last very long. The bottom line is that people make there own decisions and it is nothing that is said or done by family or friends --the prodigal son made a choice--he chose to leave--he chose to squander.
We as a society are good at the blame game and good at making sure that I can take no responsibility for my own actions. The funny thing is the story of the prodigal son does not start out with, "well a man had two sons and he was very abusive and the house was disfunctional." No not at all, it just said that a man had two sons and one of them chose to leave!
So its not about a wound or pain being there already, it was about a choice that this son made.
The son understood God's love intellectually, but he had to experience God's love through his mercy...so he had to leave and come home again! Who knows why they all walk away, but love and mercy need to await them upon there return.
