Same Old Story

 

Do you have a favorite movie that you can quote all the best lines from? For me, that would be “Steel Magnolias”. It is one of those movies that I can pick up at any point and watch the rest of the way through. I’ve seen it a million times. If I catch it when Shelby discusses her upcoming wedding while getting her hair done at Truvy’s beauty shop, (“My colors are blush and bashful.”) then I know to settle in, because the movie has just started. But, if they are to the point when Miss Clairee declares to Ouiser, “I love ya more than my luggage.” then I know, don’t get too comfy, the movie is almost over. Why, I am pretty sure if you turn the tv on right now, “Steel Magnolias” is on. Go ahead, check! TNT, Lifetime, search for it, “Steel Magnolias” is out there!

I believe the same goes with the well-known stories from the Bible. There are some stories you love to hear over and over. On the other hand, there are some stories that you have heard so many times, they have become so familiar to you, that when you get to them, you gloss over them. Oh yes, Noah and the Ark. All those animals, the rain, the dove, yep, yep, I know! Or even the story of Adam and Eve. We have all heard those stories over and over. Occasionally, we visit them through the eyes of our children. Yet, we usually zip right on through the story, maybe not really gleaning all that we could. Perhaps we are missing an important lesson along the way. 

That very thing happened to me recently. The parable of the Prodigal Son is another one of those Bible stories that we all have heard a bunch of times. For the majority of us, you can pick up the story at any point and know how it ends. If you are unfamiliar with it though, read Luke 15:11-32.

Now, up until awhile ago, whenever I heard or read that story I always thought to myself, “Don’t be like the prodigal son! Be smart. Don’t go off and waste all your money. Don’t be foolish.” I often thought too, what a wonderful father, to welcome his long lost son back to the family and how it relates to God’s forgiving heart towards us. However, when I read it recently, I realized that every time I had heard that story before, I totally missed the point of the mention of the older brother and his reaction to his younger brother’s return at the end!

It was also around this time that my husband and I were dealing with some issues regarding an estranged member of our extended family. We missed this person dearly. We thought of him often. His absence was felt at family functions. For our family though, and the situations surrounding this missing family member, we simply could not reconnect with this person. For my husband and me, it was almost like this family member had died. We mourned the loss of our relationship with him.

So when my devotional had an extra article in the back concerning the parable of the Prodigal Son, I thought, oh great, I already know this story! I dutifully read through the Scripture. I read through the devotional text outlining a repentant heart in the prodigal son, a forgiving heart in the father, and then, suddenly, MY heart was convicted! My eyes gazed upon the text. The older son had an unforgiving heart! Why, I never paid much attention to the older brother at the end of the story! I forgot he was even mentioned!

All these years I have heard this story and I never thought of the older brother at all! I didn’t realize he was an important part of the parable. He reflected hardness, vengefulness, and arrogance. I began to see how the older brother was unwilling to look past the mistakes the younger brother had made and forgive him. I realized too, that this was how I was feeling towards the estranged family member.

I continued to read the remainder of the devotional and was absorbed by the message. I wanted to take in all I could. I read it, reread it and then started to cry. I underlined sentences and was so moved by a Bible verse, I had to write it down and tape it to the wall! I could not wait to share with my husband what I had studied that day.

As I took in all this information, I prayed for forgiveness from God for being unforgiving to others. I prayed for God to help me to forgive those who had hurt me and to not be like the older brother in the parable. In the days and weeks following, I prayed for restoration of the relationship that was broken. I prayed also for God to prepare me to have a forgiving heart and open my arms to this person that I had missed and cared about so much.

Time went by. Months and months passed. While the parable wasn’t as fresh in my mind as it once was, every now and then I would be reminded of how I wanted to be like the forgiving father and not like the unforgiving older brother. It seemed like I could just come to it at any point and know exactly what was going on.

Then one day, my husband got a call our “missing” family member. Circumstances in his life had changed. He was in a difficult situation. He needed family, support, and most importantly - love. My husband invited him to our house for dinner that evening. When our family member arrived, I welcomed him into our home. We all had a wonderful time getting to know each other again. We spent hours catching up on everything he had missed in the 4 years he had been absent. He was overwhelmed by the love and affection of our three little girls who were really just meeting him for the first time in their lives.

My husband and I explained why we had distanced ourselves from him and how he had hurt us. He explained his perspective as well. By the end of our night, we all came away with a better understanding of the past. We had clarity for the present and most importantly, forgiveness was abounding.

I can’t say that our relationship with our family member is perfect now. We still face challenges in getting our relationship back to where it once was. I can say confidently though, that I have forgiven him. I have let go of the past hurts and wrong doings. I will always welcome him into our home with love.

I am thankful for the lesson I learned from that “same old story”. I am thankful for the opportunity to extend forgiveness to someone else and receive forgiveness for my hardened heart. I am so grateful to the Lord for bringing about the restoration and rebuilding of what I had believed was a dead relationship. None of this would have been possible without God!

“But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” Luke 15:32 NIV