Luke 15:11-24 (KJV) Says, "And He said, A certain man had two sons: and the younger of them said to his Father, Father give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in the land; and he began to be in want. And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would fain have filled his belly; with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. And when he came to himself, he said, how many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. And he arose, and came to his Father. But when he was yet a great way off, his Father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. But the Father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry:"
In the above passage of scripture Jesus shares a parable about a young man who ask his Father for his inheritance, and the Father complies. This young man as we see takes his inheritance, gathers his things together, leaves his Father's house, and travels a good distance from home. This young man set out eager and ready to be on his own, and to live it up. Live it up he did, to the degree that he wasted every single bit of his inheritance. He landed at rock bottom, and as the scripture states he was in want. He wound up taking a job feeding swine, and being so hungry that he wanted to eat the husks that he was feeding the swine, and there was not one person who offered to feed him.
It was at rock bottom that this young man began to face and too own the mistakes he had made. As the scripture puts it, he came to himself. He began thinking about all his Father had in provision, and how the bread his Father's servants ate was so plentiful there was enough to spare. He began to think about how blessed he was, when he was at home. He faced and owned at that moment the fact that because of his bad choices he found himself in an extremely low place, and in great need. He realized he had made many mistakes for which he was remorseful.
As we see in the above passage of scripture, this young man was down trodden, and feeling so bad about himself and the choices he had made he felt he didn't even deserve to be called his Father's son. Feeling guilty, ashamed, and remorseful he headed home not knowing how his Father would receive him. The thoughts he was having about himself and his choices more than likely came with thoughts that his Father would be angry with him, disappointed in him, ready to give him a lecture, and possibly reject him altogether. Being a Father who loved his son, however, this man received his child with open arms. In fact, he had so much compassion for him; the first thing he did was throw his arms around his neck and kiss him. He then had his servants bring his son the best clothes and shoes, and gifted him a ring. He then ordered that the biggest calf be killed and prepared in order to serve his son a fine meal. All this Father wanted was to have a huge meal prepared and celebrate the fact that his wayward son had come home. It is worthy to note that his Fathers said nothing at all to his son about the mistakes he had made.
There are many of us who have hit rock bottom at one time or another in our life, and we have had some of the very thoughts and feelings that the young man in this parable experienced. If you are at a place where you've allowed your life to spin out of control, and you're having these thoughts and feelings recognize them as coming from Satan, and rebuke them immediately. Just as the Father in this parable was eager and excited to welcome his son home your family is waiting for you. They're eager and ready to throw there arms around your neck, kiss you, and welcome you home. No one is waiting to condemn you they are waiting with love and compassion to celebrate your return. I urge you not to wait any longer to make the decision to return home to the people who love you. They are waiting for you with love and open arms.
This parable also applies also to the way our Heavenly Father feels towards those who go astray. When a person hits rock bottom they also have negative thoughts about the way God views them and feels about them, and the bad choices they've made. I can tell you for certain that the moment you opt to repent and turn back to God, there is a celebration in heaven. God is not standing ready to condemn you for your mistakes. He is eager to hear your prayers, and welcome you back to the fold with compassion, love, and open arms.
If you have not accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, I urge you to do so immediately. Go to God in prayer and ask Him to forgive you of all your sins, tell Him you believe that He sent His only Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for your sins, and that you believe Jesus rose again. If you believe this in your heart and confess it with your mouth to the Lord in prayer you have been saved, and will spend eternity in Heaven with your Lord and Savior. If you prayed to accept Christ, leave me a message so I can pray for you, and praise God with you. It is without a doubt the greatest decision you have ever made.
If you have a prayer request and would like me to pray for you, leave me a message and I will be more than happy to do so. May God bless you!
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