Day 1 – She spent all she had
“But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.”
Luke 15:17-20
Sometimes we are weary from making the wrong choices. In this familiar parable of the prodigal son, we see him begin to realize the depths of his mistakes.
I have heard this story many times, but it wasn’t until recently that I learned something that made the Fathers reaction that much more impactful.
I always thought that the Father ran to the son out of excitement. Which is probably very true, but that is not all. In this ancient culture the penalty for the insults that the son has inflected upon the father was stoning, death.
The other people around thought that this son deserved death for what he had done. They were ready to stone him.
So the Father ran to him, not just out of excitement, but also out of protection. He ran to him to spare him from death.
Just like Jesus came to us, to spare us the death that we owe due to our sin.
Inward: Jesus, what do you want me to know? What are some areas where I need to wake up? How am I trying everything but You?
Outward: Jesus, what do you want me to do? Take a few moments and look at your life, how/when has Jesus ran towards you, not just out of excitement, but also out of protection? Take some time to pray for those around you that may be in the process of realizing their need for the Father. Are there ways you can encourage them?
