The Prodigal Son (Part III)

The story of the Prodigal son (Luke 15) is a great passage of scripture, because it is so relevant to so many people today. How many of us take God's love and run with it? How many of us abuse the wonderful gift we have and not return the gift of love back to Christ? How many of us were lost but now found?

I know I was.

I think I still am.

The way I see it, there are two parts to the story of the Prodigal Son. The first part is where the son is basically a jerk and says; "Hey pops...gimme my inheritance so I can go party it up and find some girls!" He then proceeds to hop on his camel and ride off in search of college babes, spending as much money as he possibly can. After he's blown it all on cards and booze, an economic crisis hits.

Hoh boy...

So he comes running back to his father. (I've always wondered if the father intentionally gave him the money knowing full well that his son would come back and learn a lesson) The father accepts him with loving arms and even throws a party for him. He totally forgets about his sins and accepts him.

Awesome.

Here's where the part three comes in (Yeah, I didn't write a part one or two...sorry if you looked for it). I wondered today if the Prodigal Son returned to his old state of not really caring for his father. While he still greatly appreciates the forgiveness his dad gave him, he doesn't really live like it. I wondered if the son continued to abuse and be unappreciative of the gift.

So the point I'm getting at after all this talk is this...is that I feel like I'm stuck in part iii of this story. Even though I know God gave me my freedom knowing what it would do to me and our relationship...Even though I know that God lovingly accepted me back again...Even though God loves me no matter what I've done...

I still don't return the love.

I still struggle with the faith.

I still struggle to pray for more than five minutes a day...pretty sad huh?

Sure there are times when I'm really excited for what God has done for me. For what God is doing in me. And for what God is going to do for me. But most of the time I feel like I just don't care.

Why am I telling you all this? To be honest, I don't really know. Partially because I wanted to be honest with people. Partially because I wanted to let everyone know that I struggle. Partially to encourage those who may struggle with similar things, because they aren't alone.

I think it's good to struggle, because it helps us grow. When we fight certain things, we ask questions, search ourselves, and search God. In the end, we come to know ourselves, our community, and our God better than we did before.

We shouldn't be afraid to admit our struggles. Face our trials. And ask for help.

Christians aren't proud....

We're humble.