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Wayward Son, Part 1

"When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have food to spare and here I am starving to death!'" --Luke 15:17Read: Luke 15

You know the story. A silhouette appears on the horizon. Too far away to distinguish, but a father who's been waiting for his son to come home can't help but wonder. Squinting, he raises his hand over his eyes to block the sun's glare.A lone figure in the distance below a setting sun on a deserted beach As the distant figure gets closer, the father begins to walk in that direction; slowly at first, trying to match the pace of his visitor. Until he realizes this is...this is no visitor. It's him. It's his boy. His long, lost son was home. And with compassion and forgiveness, he ran to him, embraced him, kissed him, clothed him and fed him. Grace happened.

You know the story. The prodigal son is nothing new to you. The son takes his inheritance and high-tails it his way to the highway. You know the story. And in one way or another maybe you've lived it. Perhaps you're living it now. Maybe not with an inheritance, but perhaps with your inherited health. Long hours, long days, obligations, deadlines, family matters, friends that matter, must-see TV and your must-read social media find you on foreign soil; a place you were never designed to be. Maybe it's time to go home.

--Jimmy Peña

For Discussion: How could I not revisit the prodigal son during our "Wayward Son" review? Grace happened, amen? Yesterday we talked about a sweet spirit and a strong soul. I think the father in the story of the prodigal son had both.