There is a story in the Bible about a man who had two sons. One of the sons left home, did many bad things, and then came back home when everything went wrong for him. The father welcomed his returning son joyfully. It is known as the story of “The Prodigal Son,” and you can read it in Luke 15:11-32. But now I am going to tell you about another father with two sons. This father’s two sons were little boys. Timmy was five years old and Stevie was three years old.
One day Timmy told his father that he was going to run away. His reason for leaving was that he was having trouble with Stevie, his little brother. Timmy and his father found a suitcase, and his father helped him pack his belongings, putting in some books because he might want to look at them. He left his room, and his father said he would walk up the street a little way with him.
But the suitcase was heavy, and Timmy asked his father to carry it for him. His father said, “No,” because he would be going back home, and Timmy should get all the practice he could now of carrying it alone.
As they were passing a fast-food restaurant, his father bought Timmy a hamburger. Since he couldn’t eat it all, his father said to put the rest of the hamburger in the suitcase, as that would be all the food he had with him.
Back on the road again, instead of continuing on his journey, Timmy started back towards home with his father, still hauling the heavy suitcase. They turned in at the house, and his father went inside, but Timmy went around to the back.
Do you think his father forgot all about Timmy now? No. He loved him too much to do that. His father was teaching Timmy a lesson. Both his father and his mother were watching him through the window. They saw him open the suitcase and take out the books and look at them. They saw him get up and walk around the yard. Soon he came into the house and said he had decided to give his little brother another chance. So the suitcase was unpacked, and Timmy was home to stay!
The fathers in these two stories give us a picture of God, our Father, and His love for us. Sometimes we do as we please and do wrong things, which are called sin in the Bible. But He is always waiting for us to return to Him and receive His forgiveness and enjoy His love again.
Somehow as Timmy had only started his journey to run away, he changed his mind and decided to go home. His father was so happy he did! And when we are sorry for our sins and want to return to God, He, too, is always ready to forgive us and so happy to have us back in fellowship with Him.
God tells us in Isaiah 44:22, “I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, [your] transgressions [rebellions], and, as a cloud, [your] sins: return unto Me; for I have redeemed [you].” He never holds a grudge against us for our sins, and He is always ready to forgive us.
Messages of God’s Love 5/7/2023