Prodigal People

We all have them. We are confused, perplexed, dumbfounded and sometimes hurt by them. They are the prodigal person (or persons) in our lives. Like the father of the prodigal son in Luke 15, we love them and do our best to make them happy, yet they spurn our efforts and go off to do their own thing. Your prodigal person may be a parent, a son or daughter, a spouse, a friend, or a relative. The thing to remember is that the father of the prodigal son continued on with his farming life, having forgiven his prodigal person, and waiting patiently, daily, for him to come home so that he could celebrate. We all know the character of the prodigal son, the lead role in the story, and we are familiar with the brooding older brother, but we need to familiarize ourselves with the forgiving father, for it is likely that we will all find ourselves in his sandals someday.