My appreciation for the prodigal son's father has grown greatly since my own children have gotten older. Older children are hard.
It's hard watching our children, great kids, grow up knowing that they are going to make mistakes, bad choices, and be drawn into many of life's trappings along the way. You give them advice; sometimes they listen, and sometimes they don't.The prodigal son asked for his inheritance from his father. Basically, he said give me the money that will eventually be mine anyway because I need the money but I don't need you. This must have broken the father's heart.
You know he invested in his son. Taught him about God, showed him how to do the work, encouraged his talents and then BAM! I don't need you any more. By asking for the inheritance, he was saying in affect "You are dead to me."
Okay, Wow!
And yet, the father gave his son the money.
Why?
Because that father knew something that we as parents need to remember, we are not God.
We cannot change hearts. We can plant seeds, and we can water them. We can lead by example, and very important, we can pour out the love of God on them. But we are not God.
Then this incredible father did two things that I find astounding.He gave his son the money - knowing, and then, he waited.
This father was no dummy. He knew exactly how this was going down. Thanks to Adam and Eve who ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, we know. We know how the enemy seeks to kill, steal, and destroy. We know what might, can, or will happen.
And yet, he gave this son what he wanted and let him go.
Now, comes the Wowzer part.
He waited for God to move and change a heart. Talk about patient. He hoped and waited, not out of worry, but out of faith.
Oh my word, how encouraging is that! Because we know how the story ends. God humbled the son's heart, made it pliable and soft, then sent the son - home - to a waiting father who loved him.
Friend, we can trust God with our children.
So, if you're having one of those tough days where you're not seeing growth or any forward movement, don't despair. God loves your child more then you can imagine. Just keep loving, keep praying, keep being faithful and let God be God.
Finding God's Beautiful Pieces of Grace,
bym
bonitaymccoy.com