Who am I?
We read this parable in Luke 15:11-24,
And [Jesus] said, "There was a man who had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.' And he divided his property between them. Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything. "But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants."' And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' But the father said to his servants, 'Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.' And they began to celebrate. - Luke 15:11-24 ESV
As the younger son in this story, we too set out on a journey to “find ourselves” only to discover that somewhere along the way, we lost ourselves. We’ve tried so hard to “be our own person” and “branch out.” Each decision adding another layer to the mask we keep firmly held in place – the prospect of peeling away those layers even more terrifying than the thought of remaining on this destructive trajectory.
And one day, we come to the realization that we have no idea who we are, and the journey we thought would lead us to the answer only took us farther away. Now we are riddled with shame at who we’ve become and certain we have brought ourselves to an unlovable state.
Yet, when our carefully crafted facades are plucked away, and who we really are comes to light, we find our Father is still there, pursuing us, loving us more than we could ever comprehend. And even when we had lost ourselves, he never did. We rest in the embrace of the Father who ran to welcome us in all our messiness and disappointments – the Father who laid aside his dignity to restore ours. We discover that we are loved, not because of what we offer, but in spite of all we take. And we find a Father who lifts up our heads and tells us not to live in shame – who clothes us with the best robe, and puts a ring on our finger and shoes on our feet.
I pray you find peace and contentment in knowing who you really are – a child of the Most High God, the perfect Father.
With much love,
Bryan
And [Jesus] said, "There was a man who had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.' And he divided his property between them. Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything. "But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants."' And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' But the father said to his servants, 'Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.' And they began to celebrate. - Luke 15:11-24 ESV
As the younger son in this story, we too set out on a journey to “find ourselves” only to discover that somewhere along the way, we lost ourselves. We’ve tried so hard to “be our own person” and “branch out.” Each decision adding another layer to the mask we keep firmly held in place – the prospect of peeling away those layers even more terrifying than the thought of remaining on this destructive trajectory.
And one day, we come to the realization that we have no idea who we are, and the journey we thought would lead us to the answer only took us farther away. Now we are riddled with shame at who we’ve become and certain we have brought ourselves to an unlovable state.
Yet, when our carefully crafted facades are plucked away, and who we really are comes to light, we find our Father is still there, pursuing us, loving us more than we could ever comprehend. And even when we had lost ourselves, he never did. We rest in the embrace of the Father who ran to welcome us in all our messiness and disappointments – the Father who laid aside his dignity to restore ours. We discover that we are loved, not because of what we offer, but in spite of all we take. And we find a Father who lifts up our heads and tells us not to live in shame – who clothes us with the best robe, and puts a ring on our finger and shoes on our feet.
I pray you find peace and contentment in knowing who you really are – a child of the Most High God, the perfect Father.
With much love,
Bryan
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