“While the son was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion.” —Luke 15:20
In Luke 15, Jesus tells three stories about lost things. There’s one about a coin misplaced in a house and a woman who vigorously swept the floor until it was found. Then there’s one about a sheep that wandered off, and the shepherd was compelled to go searching. But the lost thing in the third story was far more precious than copper currency or a curious lamb could ever be. Unlike the coin or the sheep, the son in the story made a conscious decision to break his father’s heart.
As far as we know, the father of the lost boy didn’t go on a desperate search for his lost treasure. He didn’t gather a posse to bring his son home. Instead, he did the one thing that can be the hardest thing to do in such a situation. He waited. The heartbroken dad in Jesus’ parable patiently waited for God to write his own story as well as that of his hardhearted, rebellious, but nonetheless dearly loved offspring.
Make it Personal
Ask God for wisdom to know when to do something in the life of someone you love and when to wait on Him to work.