And When He Came To Himself

How many times have I read the parable of the prodigal son? I've lost count. Last week this verse was part of our reading through the New Testament. We talked about it both in Sunday School and church service. Until then, I had never really noticed this verse.

The father, although he loved his son, did not beg his son to change his ways. He did not seek out his son or offer him an easy out of the hard choices the son had made. Instead, he waited. And when the son came to himself, he realized the mistake he'd made.

The son had to reach rock bottom, in the pig pen, wishing to eat some of what the pigs were eating. If the father had witnessed the son in this state, what would he have thought? What would we do as parents? It's easy to want to rescue our children, but this son learned his greatest lesson in the pig sty. And the love of his father remained with him even there. He knew he could come home and at the very least his father would allow him to live the life of a servant.

We all have people in our lives who are far from God. Keep praying for them to wake up and come to themselves. And when we wander from what we know is God's will and way for our lives may we quickly come to ourselves and repent. As our pastor said in his sermon last week, the greatest rest you'll know on earth comes after that repentance.