Article in the Kingston Daily Freeman

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Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Excerpt From Letters to God on a Prodigal Son



 For the next few weeks I'll be featuring excerpts from Letters to God on a Prodigal Son

Feb. 14th

Dear Lord,
I read in my daily devotional that when we go though times of darkness, it is a time for us to listen. I’m listening Lord! Speak to me. It’s a wintry mix outside—snow and rain, with hail adding to the danger. The gentle falling snow has given way to sleet and freezing rain. Snow and sleet make for very dangerous driving conditions.

            Ben is a wintry mix of snow and sleet. He said it himself. His flesh is stronger than his spirit. He wants to do good, like his own father, but it’s difficult for him. He’s driving down a dangerous path of addiction. I can hardly believe this is true. I should have opened my eyes wider, observed more.

If I put everything together that I’ve read in the last few days, it seems that you are saying that there is a time for judgment over Ben’s actions and decisions. The book of Jeremiah shows this clearly. You gave the Israelites many chances, just as we gave Ben. God spoke to His people through Jeremiah that He would judge the nation, but they refused to listen. Judgment came though King Nebuchadnezzar. Benjamin has been weighed and found lacking. However, unlike the Old Testament, he doesn’t need to be destroyed. Perhaps You’ll put him in exile for a while, the way you did with the Israelites, then bring him back to You. But now it appears, this is a time of judgment.

The Bible makes it clear. “God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows” (Galatians 6:7). Ben has sown some bad seeds, and he needs to reap the consequences without me stepping in and sheltering him. He needs to find these things out for himself. We gave him many chances and he’s failed. I don’t want him to see himself as a failure, but he needs to understand there are consequences to his actions. He’s turned off his phone, avoiding us. He doesn’t want to confront the issues and talk with us. What should he do? Almost everyone I spoke with thinks he should come home. Lord, what is Your will?

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