Morning Prayer - When You Run To Meet Me

Lord, two sons are at war within me: the one who fled, and the other who was filled with resentment.

“The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.” (Luke 15:12)

And so I go off to a distant country, a land of separation from You. There I squander Your gifts, my inheritance, with wild living, searching for happiness where it cannot be found.

Soon I am left alone, hungry and desperate, in a pigsty among strangers, where I long even for the food that no one else would touch.

In this emptiness, I finally realize my own wretchedness and Your goodness. A realization dawns within me.

“I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.” (Luke 15:18)

Father, I run into Your embrace

And when I decide to return, a miracle happens. You do not wait with folded arms to see if I have repented enough. No, You see me from a distance and run to meet me.

Your heart burns with compassion, and Your embrace welcomes me before I can even speak a word.

“The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.” (Psalm 103:8)

I want to tell You everything I had prepared, to confess my unworthiness and ask You to take me on, at least as a hired servant.

“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’” (Luke 15:21)

But You interrupt my confession with a kiss. You are not interested in my past, only in my future with You. You order the best robe, a ring, and sandals to be brought.

You do not accept me as a hired hand, but fully restore to me the dignity of a son. In You, I am truly a new creation.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

I was dead, but now I live in You

Lord, today I also ask You to heal the heart of the older son within me. Heal my self-righteousness, my score-keeping, and my anger when I see Your merciful love for others.

Do not let my faithfulness become a noose around my neck, filled with bitterness and envy. Let me always remember that everything that is yours is also mine, and that the greatest gift is to always be with You.

Teach me to rejoice with You and with all of heaven when a single sinner repents.

Thank you, Jesus, for being the face of this Father who runs to meet His lost children. Thank you for coming to seek the lost, like me.