the sheep, coin, and son

I know, I know....I said it was coming back for good, and it turned out to be false. The more I think about it, this blog has kind of been a microcosm of my pursuit of God. Hot and cold.

Mostly cold.

However, I've been thinking and praying a lot lately and something really hit me pretty hard yesterday. You always hear people saying things like "God is my best friend" and stuff like that, but sometimes it's hard to pinpoint exactly what that means or how that could be true of something not physically there.

Then I started thinking about how fickle I am with God and how I'll go a few months and really actively pursue him with all my heart, and then I'll go just as long going through the motions and all that stuff. Any other friend would get fed up with me (understandably) and at the very least have a little hesitation in their heart about being there for me again and again and again after I take them for granted.

But then I read the 15th chapter in Luke. Jesus tells us three different parables about "people" being separated from God. In the stories about the lost sheep and coin, the seeker actively looked for the lost. He "joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home" according to verse 5. How friggin' ridiculous is that? Not only does he find the lost and without hesitation take him home, but he does so joyfully?

In the third parable, Jesus talks about the son who not only wandered from his dad, but he blew his inheritance and was basically a jerk the whole time. The father waited patiently at home, and the second his son decided to come back, he not only didn't hesitate to welcome him, he threw a P-Diddy size party in honor of it.

I'm more thankful than ever to be able to worship a God with my music, words, and life that has patience and grace for me that I don't even come close to deserving.