Life as a Christian Woman

Luke 15:11-32 (NIV)

The Parable of the Lost Son

¹¹Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. ¹²The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.

¹³“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. ¹⁴After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. ¹⁶He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

¹⁷“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! ¹⁸I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. ¹⁹I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.’ ²⁰So he got up and went to his father.
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

²¹“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.^[a]‘

²²“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. ²³Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. ²⁴For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.

²⁵“Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. ²⁶So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. ²⁷‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’

²⁸“The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. ²⁹But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. ³⁰But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’

³¹” ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. ³²But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ “

I try not to bore you all with stories from my life too often (really, I promise I try!), but this is a story that needs to be shared. This past weekend I attended a wedding. Most weddings have a fair amount of drama, but this one had the potential for, well, drama of the epic variety. Let me set the stage:

* We have the bride’s parents, who went through a bitter divorce 12 years ago.
* We have the bride’s mother’s new mother-in-law (the step-grandmother).
* Mix in the bride’s maternal grandmother, a wild card.
* Add a dose of the groom’s parents, who are separated.
* For the icing on the cake, add the bride’s brother, who hasn’t spoken to his mother in more than seven years.

Ah, but people were praying. Praying for healing, praying for peace, praying for a day that would be remembered for the right reasons. And God heard those prayers.

The bride’s parents finally buried all past hurts and had a great time. They talked and laughed, took pictures with their beautiful daughter. There wasn’t just peace, there was happiness and joy, and pride in their daughter.

The bride’s grandmother? She was hugging on everyone and happy for the newly married couple, while the step-grandmother befriended everyone, most especially the bride’s step-mother. The groom’s parents were basking in pride for their son.

But there was still the matter of the bride’s brother. The split between he and his mom was bitter. No words, no cards, no communication in more than seven years. He has been filled with anger that boiled over on so many occasions.

To get to the wedding, he had to borrow a car. And since the car was a stick shift, he had to learn to drive it. He drove five hours, leaving early in the morning, knowing he would have to return just hours after the wedding to go to work.

Knowing his mother would be there.

He got there just before the wedding, and sat with his dad’s family. He watched as his mother was escorted to her seat. When the ceremony ended, he went to stand with his dad.

His mother had been told he was there. When the service was over, she walked over to  him, not knowing what his reaction would be.

He saw her coming, and whispered to his dad, “Here we go…”

And she hugged him.

And in that one moment, all the anger, bitterness, hatred, all of it was gone. Just like that. She whispered to him that she loved him and missed him. He couldn’t speak, his throat was so tight with emotion.

Throughout the reception, she kept going back to him, hugging him, smiling at him. His grandmother and step-grandmother hugged him close and raved about how great he looked, how handsome he was, and how much they had missed him.

And then, what most of us thought would never happen, did.

The photographer lined them up: The ex-spouses, the bride, and the prodigal son. Together. Smiling. Happy.

I don’t know what the future holds, but I know that there has been a healing in this family. While I expected epic drama, what I experienced was the epic manner in which God moves.

Never, ever underestimate the Great Physician!