About a year ago, I decided to deactivate my Facebook account because of various reasons. After being deactivated for almost a year, I decided to reactivate my account. The main reason was to share God’s word and be an encouragement to others. This is certainly what this world needs, and since everyone is on social media, I thought it was time. When I logged on, it was like I never left. I had a lot of welcoming messages and nice comments welcoming me back to Facebook.
I have always loved the parables in the Bible. The many lessons are wonderful and very powerful. One of my favorites is the parable of the Prodigal Son. The story describes a father who has two sons, and when the younger son comes of age, he asks for his share of the family inheritance. The father agrees and this son departs to another country where he wastes his wealth with extravagant living. After his money is all gone, he barely survives by taking a job feeding pigs. Hungry and penniless, he comes to his senses. He decides to go back to his father and apologize for his foolish conduct. He hopes his father will accept him back as just one of his servants. To his surprise, and his older brother’s disdain, their father welcomes the younger son home with a celebration. He had finally returned home.
Today, many are doubtful because they are not sure that God can or will forgive some of the sins they have committed. We carry our feelings of guilt and let them destroy our assurance. Some who are not Christians have it in their minds that “there is no way God will forgive me or save me after all the bad things I have done.” If that is the way you are thinking, you need to pay close attention to what Christ says in this parable, because if that is the way you feel it is obvious that you have some wrong concepts about God. The story of the Prodigal Son reminds us that it is never too late to turn back to our Father who will, without exception, welcome us back with open arms.
God is full of patience, mercy, grace, and forgiveness. He is a loving God, and He waits for you. God loves you and will always be standing there waiting to see you return home. And when he sees you, it’s like he runs to hug you and welcome you home, just like the father in this parable did. That is the kind of love that God has for you. What are you waiting for?