When You Know What To Do … Don’t Procrastinate!

“I will get up and go to my father.” (Luke 15:18)

The Prodigal now isolated, friendless and afraid he was going to die. His better world with its greener pastures now totally failed, his resources exhausted. Not surprising then…his desperation to live began to break through the numb drunken party state he’d known for so long and he was so, so hungry. So hungry he couldn’t hide behind his drunken indifferent bravado towards food … he had no alcohol now but he did have the Grim Reaper’s feathery fingers sending ominous dread down his spine, as they seemed to tighten around his neck. Memory flashes of his contemptible behaviour threatened and grotesque images leaped out at him, leering and teasing adding to his already terrified state.

“I’ve got to have something decent to eat.”
He went into the city, forgetting the whole country was stricken with drought, its streets were teaming with beggars like him pleading for food, his cries for mercy never heard. He went to his previous haunts for help only to have his humiliation compounded as he was driven away by the very people he had been so generous to for so long.

“Get out of here, you stinking beggar…drunkard! And don’t you come back!”
Multiple voices in his head now took up the taunting…
“You’re going to die anyway, why not now?”
“You’ve had your chances and wasted them all!”
“You’re good for nothing, a loser!”
“No one will give you another chance!”
“Just give up…Give up now!”

Soberness though brought with it an undeniable desire to live and a hope for a better tomorrow. His thoughts drifted back to his father’s love for him as a child and the reassurance it produced in him; broke the pride that had prevented his contemplating going home. Facing the consequences of his past in the light of his father’s love wasn’t nearly as bad as he had first imagined. In assessing his situation further he realised that even the servants in his father’s house received three good meals a day. And although he had sold his sonship out to stupidity, he felt confident his father would engage him as a hired servant.

“I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father I have sinned against heaven and in your sight. I am no longer worthy to be called your son, just make me like one of your hired servants.’” So he got up and went to his father. (Luke 15:17-20).

Determined to set things right…”I will arise and go” and he did! He didn’t wait for things to get better before he’d show his face back home. There was no procrastination, no double mindedness, just action. He was on his way with a one way ticket, there was no turning back to where he’d come from, he’d made his decision to go home and it was final. Now he positioned himself to build a new life…right with God and right with his father.

The Prodigal humble enough to accept the lowest position with all its menial tasks demonstrated the value and integrity he placed on a restored relationship with God and his father. He didn’t stop halfway and quit, he finished what he started, repented fully and thus was fully restored. (1 John 1:9).

“… I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one especially wicked person who repents (changes his mind, abhorring his errors and misdeeds, and determines to enter upon a better course of life) than over ninety-nine righteous persons who have no need of repentance.” (Luke 15:7)

May God keep you from procrastination in seeking forgiveness and restoration throughout your life time and may your confidence always be founded in the Mercy of God’s love and kindness in Jesus’ Name.

Humility before God is to agree with Him and obey!

God Bless and Keep You!

The Great Escape

(Luke 15:13)
“…He journeyed into a distant country.”

Exasperated… “I can’t seem to please anybody, least of all myself.”
So he decided to get out of the family business, as far and as fast as he could arrange it. Disillusioned with who he was and taunted by relentless self questioning…
“Is this all there is to life for me? I’ll never find out if I stay here!”

He resented the expectations placed on him, the 24 hour, seven days a week obligation…a boring, lifeless, imprisoning drudgery, day in and day out accountability…“I can’t stand it anymore! There’s got to be more!”

The younger of two sons, he was born to his father’s second wife and although not entitled to the first-born son’s inheritance he was due one-third of the estate. (Duet.21:15-17) He was determined to have his day in the sun. “Father, give me my share.” After the reckoning was completed, he took the cash equivalent to his share of the property and left. “Free at last…I’m free at last!”

Thus the Great Escape had begun. Running from family expectations into, to him, a vastly astounding and exciting world. Initially he felt justified drowning his memories in drunken binges and comforting his emotional pain in the arms of available women. He never seemed short of people who’d have a drink with him and listen to his woeful tale of parental neglect and usury. In fact, so long as he kept buying the drinks, they’d agree passionately with anything he devised to say.

He was amazed at how many young people from his district he’d seen from time to time…they’d run off, just like him.
“They’re lost and don’t even know it.” He’d say to some of his drinking buddies. “Definitely too young to be running with this crowd.” They responded, “Did you notice how dead looking and cynical they’ve become? Hard to believe it’s the same people.” “It’s been six months since we’d seen them last and they’ve been in the game now for the last three months since their money gave out.”
“Some of the guys are saying they’d do anything at all now for a feed. Pathetic really…considering where they’ve come from.”
“They can’t all be as smart as you now can they? Get another drink will you!”

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God bless you and keep you in the centre of His will, encouraged and fortified in your faith and desire to be available and obedient to the leading of His Holy Spirit, in Jesus’ name, Amen. Every day somebody is crying out for a savior. The Lord enquiring , “who will respond for us?”

If you’ve been running and now have exhausted your resources … if you release your whole situation and life back into the hands of God He’ll undertake immediately, on your behalf, to lift your burden and connect you with the appropriate resource and favor with men to reverse your current situation. Trust God, He won’t let your down if you trust Him and let Him act on your behalf, in Jesus’ name.

Blind To Privilege

Son, you are always with me, all that is mine is yours. (Luke 15:31)

All that is mine is yours … that’s my frustration, it’s yours Dad; not mine. I want the control and benefit personally without accountability to you or anyone for it.

Blind to Privilege
1. Son, you are always with me … this privilege of association needs to be respected as it will grant you insight and wisdom in conducting successful day to day operations which in turn will positively impact your quality of life in an ongoing way.
2. Learning how to make things happen and maintain momentum doesn’t come automatically to anyone – it must be learnt from those who know how. What a privilege when you are invited to learn.
3. Potential and opportunity are both existing yet definitely hidden resources to everyone. Discerning either requires a quiet confidence they exist and a commitment to find them, with encouragement along the way from those who have gone before and been successful.
4. Because of the association you’ll be positioned, equipped and trained to have as much as your mentor or far more, why not? i.e. The Rockefeller family – the association with the name Rockefeller alone would open multiple opportunities. There is however one who is greater in power, influence and resource than Rockefeller yet demands association and relationship to benefit from his availability and Kingdom resource.
5. Cultivating the spirit to achieve demands humility and the hunger to stay connected to the teacher until a working understanding is produced in the pupil.

The attitude demonstrated by the son is appalling as no wealth gained will last or function without prudent management and business savvy. The Father’s resource was already accessible by his son to enjoy and benefit from and was never an issue with the father. He was concerned that even though his son was physically with him, his heart wasn’t and thus wouldn’t be capable of maintaining or multiplying the privilege he had been afforded.

Bitterness and resentment will always blind you to privilege and with it opportunity … be warned!

Every day, somebody, somewhere is crying for a savior! “Who will we send? …Here I am Lord send me.” (Isa 6:8) The Father already knows what you have need of, before you even ask … Ask in Jesus’ Name

God bless you and keep you in His unfolding love in Jesus’ name. Amen

Starting Over

Father, I no longer deserve to be recognized as a son of yours! (Luke 15:21)

There are not too many who realize a genuine second chance in life and make good without major attitude changes. Even with all the support, opportunity and resource in the world, a person still isn’t guaranteed success in liberty! The emotional baggage people willingly continue to carry is self-destructive and impacts, impedes or, in fact, contaminates opportunities and relationships without any effort on the individual’s part; they only need the right trigger to implode on the spot.

The well-worn term … "They will have to hit the bottom of their barrel before they’ll start to recover" is such a waste of all that is good in life, yet appears to be sadly true in so many people’s experience.

"Father, I no longer deserve to be recognized as a son of yours!" is a statement from a young man who hit the bottom of his particular barrel and discovered relational relative value … his own, others, opportunity, ability, even provision and security. Thus we find from his heart, humility escaping his lips, gone is the disdain and the self-opiniated arrogance.

What is demonstrated clearly is his hunger to start over at the level of his actual productive ability, not an inflated concept of himself, and align himself in agreement to where he is assigned – his starting point. It’s reaffirmed in life over and over again as you hear of people and companies finally identifying their specific niche area, they go all out to invest their lives and talents into it and the prosperity and well being that follows their concerted effort. Yes, you have to start right to finish right and being at the right place at the right time is essential.

The actions of this young prodigal – going back to his starting point in life … HOME, with a servant’s attitude, opened the door for his reinstatement into his actual personal life journey and development. He started by saying "… if you’ll have me, I’ll work as your servant for three good meals a day and a roof over my head". His father repositioned his starting point by declaring him his son with full privilege, with it though, the responsibility to feed his servants three good meals a day and keep a roof over their heads by learning to run a profitable business.

One can never run from their true station in life, inevitably it will confront them, creating the necessity to rise to the occasion or vanish in dismal, sullen, waste of life. Starting over requires the active participation of one’s own free will, the humility to make the necessary changes and the patience to learn the basics for life’s progression. We, all of us, need help to reach the best us we can be and maintain liberty, peace, love and joy in all our lives. It will never change. Employers need employees, employees need employers; governments need tax, people need good government but until we all realize we really do need each other to give their best in their appropriate station in life we’ll be all looking to Start Over! "What you make happen for others, God will make happen for you". (Eph 6:8)

Every day, somebody, somewhere is crying for a saviour! "Who will we send? … Here I am Lord send me. (Isa 6:8

God bless you and keep you in His unfailing love in Jesus’ name. Amen