[The Love Of God] The Prodigal Son Sample

The Journey Back Home

The prodigal son’s journey back home started the moment he left. The day he gathered all he had and left his home, he started coming back home. He may not have realized it at the time, but the truth is that when he left, he started losing. He started losing his money: spending it on things that were not important, on people who did not love him, on selfish and shallow things, trying to fill a void that could not be filled with any of those things. He lost all the comfort he had at home, he lost touch with his family, and he lost sight of what was truly important in life.

When he lost everything he had, he realized he needed to come back home. He did not think he was worthy of his father’s love and affection again, nor worthy of his forgiveness, but he knew that he needed to go back home. Back to where it all started. Back to where he felt safe and had everything he needed. Back home where he had taken everything for granted. After venturing into the distant country and spending all his money, he realized that being home was everything he wanted.

Have you ever ventured into the distant country away from God? We all have, one way or the other. Some of us may have ventured deeper, while others not so much. Maybe we turned away from God because we did not get what we wanted. Maybe it was because of a difficult situation in our lives, or maybe because someone we trusted hurt us. Maybe it was because we just wanted to see what was out there, and have things go according to our plans and not God’s plans. Whatever the reason, throughout our lives, we all wander away from God, venturing into a distant country like the prodigal son.

After having spent all his money, and being left alone, hungry, cold, and tired while he fed pigs, the prodigal son decided it was time to go back home. He had to hit rock bottom to realize that since the moment he left, he was actually on his way back home. He needed to go back home, where he had everything he wanted and needed. He had to go back to his father’s plans for him.

Thought of the Day: God is always pulling us closer to Himself, even when we do not realize it. May we always feel Him pulling and decide to come back home to Him, and to His perfect plans for our lives.