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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