Home before Dark

Jesus told the story of the prodigal son to give us a picture of what God is like. The son left his father, just as we turn our backs on God. Soon he ran out of money. Maybe he even sent a message back to his father asking for more money, but was refused because the father loved his son too much to underwrite him in his rebellion and sin.

Some do the same with God. As they are living in sin, they ask for His help and His blessing. But they do not receive it, because as the psalmist says, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear” (Psalm 66:18). God loves us too much to bless us and answer our prayers when we are living in sin.

Yet there are some people today who will break God’s commandments and then wonder why He is not blessing them. Maybe they are sexually involved with someone other than their husband or wife. Maybe they are stealing, doing drugs, or are trapped in alcoholism. They say, “Why isn’t God blessing my life?” Yet they are living outside His will. Until they acknowledge their sin and turn from that lifestyle, they will never experience the blessing of God in their lives as they ought to.

Because God loves us, He doesn’t want us to stay in a sinful lifestyle. He wants us to get uncomfortable. He wants us to be miserable. He wants us to come to our senses and say, like the prodigal, “I need to get home. I need to get home before dark.”