Life is like a Prodigal Son (The Other One)

Luke 15:31 ” ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.  Be we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ “

My mother was a servant.  I’d almost say the ultimate servant.  Even to her death, battling Alzheimer, having lost most of her mental capacity, one thing I noticed visiting her the day before she passed away, she was attempting to do things for people. It was engrained into her very fiber and being.

I think that is where I got my need and drive to want to help and serve others.    Growing up I really got a charge out of making others happy, helping make what ever it was they needed or were working on easier for them.  My job now even is focused on helping others in business find ways of making the way they do their work easier, more affordable, and more productive.  A great gift to have but also a detriment when taken too far or done with the wrong motive.

I have struggled in my life drawing the line between really serving someone verse becoming a people pleaser type verses helping others to the point of trying to take on their pain or burden.  Motive is important and there is a point where you have to let someone experience the hurt and pain associated with decisions.  That is where growth comes from I think.

Being a servant type though, I have always struggled a bit with the prodigal son story.  It is kind of like the movie Legends of the Fall.  Brad Pitt is the wild untamed one that goes out and wrestles with life and throws caution to the wind verses the faithful son that stays behind, supports the family, etc.  Who gets the bad end of the stick in the end.  That’s right the trusty faithful one.

That is me, I can relate to the son that stayed home, the one that was faithful.  The one that could be trusted to be there when needed.  I can relate to the anger and frustration of the fathers reaction accepting the lost son with open arms as if nothing happened.  I’ve been there.  I’ve done that.

If we really take a look at the son that stayed, I think we begin to realize he too was somewhat of a prodigal son as well.  He was lost in a different way.  He didn’t really see or comprehend what life was like and what was really going on.  He was too busy pleasing his father to really understand the situation.

You see when we serve with the wrong motive me miss out.  It causes us to react in several ways.

• Resentment:  In verse 28  the older son shows a huge resentment toward his brother.  Resentment to the point of anger, despising his brother and the way his father was handling the situation.
• Blurs your Relationship and Perspective:  In verse 29 was he a son or a “slave.”  Also notice the use of the phrase “your property.”  This really shows how out of perspective the elder sons focus was. A son realizes he is family and part of any possessions his father has.  All he need do is ask.
• Causing Triangling:  In verse 29 and 30 the elder son tries to get his father to take sides.  It is me or him!  “How could you choose him after all I have done for you?!”
• Interferes with Gods true blessing:  Verse 31 shows the eldest son totally misunderstood this relationship and what comes with unconditional love.  Everything I have is yours, don’t you see it?  Do we serve with the expectation of getting things in return whether it be something material or the approval of others?

I loved the fathers response.  He deals with two big issues in two simple sentences.  First, “everything I have is yours”.  Everything.  Nothing is just mine, it is ours, yours, at your disposal.  The father is saying, I’ve never held anything back from you.  It is there for you and for the taking.

The second point the father makes probably nailed the eldest son between the eyes.   With this statement the father helps the eldest son gain perspective on the true relationship that is involved here.  He didn’t say in verse 31 “my son”.  He said “your brother”.    It was like he was saying, get a grip here.  It is not about you.  It is not about who has what.  It is about the relationship.  It is about the family being together and secure, taking care of one another.

Yes I’ve been that prodigal son number two.  I’ve experienced each of the things that the elder son went through.  So though the story is mainly about the joy over repentance, I think too it is about motive.  The why behind what we do.

It is good to know that if we are that prodigal son number one, we have a loving father that understands and will be there for us with open arms.  It is also comforting to know that we have a loving father that has the right perspective and ability to do what it takes to bring our focus back to where it needs to be.