St. Luke's Blogs

And he said, “There was a man who had two sons; and the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that falls to me.’ And he divided his living between them. Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took his journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in loose living. And when he had spent everything, a great famine arose in that country, and he began to be in want. So he went and joined himself to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would gladly have fed on the pods that the swine ate; and no one gave him anything. But when he came to himself he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ And he arose and came to his father. But while he was yet at a distance, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet; and bring the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and make merry;  for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to make merry.

We were in the car, on our way to work. Aimee and I had only been married for five months. We were both on staff at the First United Methodist Church of Altus. We decided to grab breakfast that morning at McDonald’s. As we were waiting in line, waiting for our food, we heard the people on the radio talking. One person said, “It looks like something has happened at the World Trade Towers. We are not sure what, but it looks like a bomb or something.” That was, of course, the first thing we heard about the first plane that had hit Tower 1 of the World Trade Center in New York…

Agnes Gonxha Bajaxhiu was born in Skopje, Macedonia. She made an early commitment at the age of 12 to follow her faith and serve the church. At the age of 18, she left home and joined the Sisters of Loreto. While going through her training, she changed her name to Sister Mary Teresa. Following her faith and her heart, she soon left for Calcutta to join the sisters who were working there as missionaries.

The story of the prodigal son is one of, if not THE most important lesson Jesus taught.  In it, we find excellent examples of the single most harmful element of human behavior – selfishness.  And we also find a beneficial element – forgiveness.

When we take an honest look, we can see ourselves in the younger son who left home with his inheritance. 

There is no greater joy than to be connected to family. There is no greater pain than to be separated from a family connection. Nate was a young boy who experienced both pain and joy. From an early age, Nate’s family had many struggles. As time went by, Nate found himself less and less connected to his family. Sadly, at the age of 13, Nate was removed from his parents by social service. He was placed in the foster care system. At an early age, Nate found himself without a family, homeless, and with little to no hope for being reunited with his family.

The Prodigal Son is one of my favorite parables.  I came to appreciate verse 24 in a powerful way when I met Bryon.

Bryon was one of our homeless guests who came every day and sat in the atrium.  He slept most of the day, his folded arms for his pillow.  He rarely made eye contact or smiled.  He walked slumped over like he carried the weight of the world.  Bryon was in his early 30s and had been on the streets for quite a while.  Some of the staff befriended Bryon, making sure he had something to eat.  They began to sit around the table and engage him in conversation, learning that while Bryon suffered from mental illness, he was very intelligent, and that cleanliness was a priority.

I love to drive, and I prefer it to almost any other mode of transportation. I love to take long road trips with my family. I enjoy loading my family into our van and enjoying an adventure on the road. I have driven in large cities with congested traffic, and country roads where getting stuck behind a tractor is the biggest obstacle. No matter where the road may be and where the road may lead, I am happy to drive.

There was a short time in my life when driving was a struggle for me.  During my junior year of college, I was involved in an accident that totaled my car and sent me to the hospital. Thankfully, everyone involved was eventually physically fine, although neither of the cars in the incident would ever be driven again.

Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and the scribes murmured, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”

So he told them this parable: “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it?

“Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it?

And he said, “There was a man who had two sons; and the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that falls to me.’ And he divided his living between them.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

The Story of Cain and Abel is filled with daily struggles. Both Cain and Abel worked hard. They wanted to please God. Cain especially struggled with anger, jealousy, and selfishness.

Cain worked in the fields, growing crops. Abel managed animals, working hard to increase his flocks. Each understood that giving a portion of their crops or flocks to God was the right thing to do. After Cain’s crops had been harvested, he brought a small offering to God. Around the same time, Abel selected “Fat portions from the firstborn of his flock.” Abel’s offering pleased God, but Cain’s offering did not find favor with God.