Lessons from the prodigal son

By Todd Barrier  

Whenever we hear the story of The Prodigal Son, it’s always from the son’s perspective. Have you ever thought about the father?  

What must he have been feeling? What was going through his head?  

After all, it seems he did a good job raising his son. His son was knowledgeable in all the customs of the day, as far as we know. He came to realize he had sinned against God and his father, so we assume the father taught him this. When it was too much to take any longer, the son went where he knew he would be loved: to his father’s home.  

The dad seems to follow the Proverbs 22:6 admonition – to raise a child in the Lord, and when he grows old, he will not depart from it.  

With that in mind, think of how the father felt. He had done his best, and still his son abandoned him and was living a life of unrighteousness.  

He must have felt like a failure. He must have questioned what he’d done wrong.  

In the end, he put his faith in God – and the son came back and found his father waiting for him.  

How many days must the father have been there waiting? Many, I’m sure.  

In our life, we might give our kids all of the tools to live right, and they might choose another way. If we have taught them correctly, hopefully they will remember the way home. And when they return, instead of “I told you so” or judgement, they will find a loving father/mother waiting to welcome them back because they teach God’s love and demonstrate it even in tough times – just like the prodigal son’s father did.