(I didn’t post on part 4…but here we are for week 5.)

In the parable of the Prodigal Son we see that you don’t have to leave home to be lost.  The older brother was close to the father in proximity but far from his father’s heart.  This prompted one author to ask, "Can you imagine if the older brother met the prodigal before the father did?"  What a disaster that would have been!

Our compassionate God desires for all to come home…even those who never left.

The parable ends inside out.  The brother that was on the outside is in and the brother that was on the inside was out…by his own choosing.  If his little brother was on the inside then he wanted nothing to do with the celebration.  Which leads me to my inquiry…Who would have to show up at church for you to want to leave?  Who would need to be on the inside for you to want to be on the outside?

May the Lord draw us closer to his heart so that we too gaze down the road wondering who might be coming home today…