Reflections on the Prodigal Son

I did a bad job of explaining to a friend why this parable resonates deeply with me. For reference it is found in Luke 15. Read it over but note the context in which this story come up. I'll take that up later. The story is well know. The youngest son asks his father for his share of his father's estate. He wastes his money in wild living in another country and ends up feeding pigs and starving. He decides to head home and see if his father will take him back as a hired servant.

Right away we learn the heart of the son. In order to get his inheritance he essentially tells his father that he wishes his father was dead. he wanted hos father to have no part, no influence, no practical affect on his life at all. he wanted to be free to do what he wanted with complete freedom. Now he never denies that his father still lives, he's just irrelevant to the son.

Man, is that ever how I spent a good part of my early adult life. I knew God existed and even knew I was a child of God but that was pretty much the end of it. I took the opportunity to live a life free from God. Like in the parable, I ended up hitting rock bottom realizing the emptiness of my situation.

But maybe, just maybe, there is something better back home. Maybe there is something better. It was just a little bit of hope.

I'll stop there so this post isn't too long. Comment if you want to.