Fiery Trials

This past Sunday my pastor was discussing the prodigal son and "the older son." He was saying that basically neither one was really interested in the father, but only what they could get from the father. In my walk as a Christian I must admit that I have been in both camps. I've been the son who was desperate, tired, out of resources, completely broken, and had nothing to offer. I've walked the path of humility back to the father. Its difficult because I realized that I am absolutely nothing, I have nothing, and I was that smelly filthy rags person-that the father took back. I think that the son knew deep in his heart, that the father was good and although he didn't deserve to come back and get anything-he realizes that he has nothing, and is nothing without the father. What joy when the son comes back to the Father and the Father restores him and hugs him and gives him the best- has a celebration for this smelly, dirty, sinful man! That is our wonderful Father! The fathers love is what satisfies the thirsty soul. Jesus is our living water. In contrast, the older son did everything right, made the right choices, sacrificed for his brother, yet he was mad when the prodigal came back. He feels that its unfair that he has done all the right things, while his brother completely messed up his life squandering the inheritance and lived sinfully. He's jealous, resentful and doesn't understand the fathers love. He is in reality that smelly filthy rags person only he doesn't know it. There have been times in my life where I felt that things were unfair. That I've made the right choices, I've made sacrifices for others, and been slapped in the face for it! I've been betrayed, used, and heartbroken. That my friends is the Christian life. I was listening to another sermon the same day and this sermon was about how Jesus told the disciples to get into the boat (they really didn't want to) and go to the other side. So they get into the boat without Him and a storm kicks up and they are paddling against the waves- their tired to the point of exhaustion, their fearful, but they keep going against the roaring, pounding waves. The point is that Jesus invites us into the storm so that he can perform a work on our hearts. It feels like we are fighting the waves and what happens is we get to the end of ourselves and then Jesus shows up! Jesus uses the trials or waves in our lives so that he can purify our motives so that we don't just serve him to get something from him, or serve him because we think that if we make all the right choices and do the right things, think that we deserve a gold medal, but that we serve him because we are in love with him and its our duty. We learn that at the end of our trial all that really was important is our relationship with our Father. We can have peace with God even though we suffer loss, heartache, betrayal, sickness, or whatever else. We can be assured of his faithfulness to us and that He will complete that work in us that He has promised!

"We love Him because He first loved us." (1 John 4:19)

"being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.." (Philippians 1:6)