Code of Ethical Patient Behavior

1. DO NOT EXPECT YOUR DOCTOR TO SHARE YOUR DISCOMFORT
Involvement with the patient's suffering might cause him to lose valuable scientific objectivity.

2. BE CHEERFUL AT ALL TIMES

Your doctor leads a busy and trying life and requires all the gentleness and reassurance he can get.

3. TRY TO SUFFER FROM THE DISEASE FOR WHICH YOU ARE BEING TREATED

Remember that your doctor has a professional reputation to uphold.

4. DO NOT COMPLAIN IF THE TREATMENT FAILS TO BRING RELIEF

You must believe that your doctor has achieved a deep insight into the true nature of your illness, which transcends any mere permanent disability you may have experienced.

5. NEVER ASK YOUR DOCTOR TO EXPLAIN WHAT HE IS DOING OR WHY HE IS DOING IT

It is presumptuous to assume that such profound matters could be explained in terms that you would understand.

6. SUBMIT TO NOVEL EXPERIMENTAL TREATMENT READILY

Though the surgery may not benefit you directly, the resulting research paper will surely be of widespread interest.

7. PAY YOUR MEDICAL BILLS PROMPTLY AND WILLINGLY

You should consider it a privilege to contribute, however modestly, to the well-being of physicians and other humanitarians.

8. DO NOT SUFFER FROM AILMENTS THAT YOU CANNOT AFFORD

It is sheer arrogance to contract illnesses that are beyond your means.

9. NEVER REVEAL ANY OF THE SHORTCOMINGS THAT HAVE COME TO LIGHT IN THE COURSE OF TREATMENT BY YOUR DOCTOR

The patient-doctor relationship is a privileged one, and you have a sacred duty to protect him from exposure.

10. NEVER DIE WHILE IN YOUR DOCTOR'S PRESENCE OR UNDER HIS DIRECT CARE

This will only cause him needless inconvenience and embarrassment.

Anonymous

Busybodies!

"We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies"
(2 Thessalonians 3:11).

Martin Luther had much to say about gossip and its terrible by-products. Luther
pointed out that when we gossip we are doing Satan's chores for him. He related
an incident of a couple so happily married that it was the talk of the town. The
devil couldn't cause disharmony between them, but he finally hit upon the trick:
he sent an old hag to the wife to tell her that her husband was having an affair
with another woman and he planned to kill her. The hag told her that she would
find a knife under her husband's pillow. She then hurriedly went to the husband
with the same terrible tale. Unfortunately for the wife, the husband found her
knife first, and that was the end of the town's happiest marriage.

There are several vital lessons here: malicious tongues kill; Satan is behind
the vicious tongue; trust your partner; and, above all, check your sources.
Gossip is verbal interest in the failings of others rather than their feelings.
Our own faults should keep us busy enough praying to a forgiving and forgetting
Father and offering prayers of thanksgiving that He so willingly overlooks our
own many malpractices of tongue.

Pascal shares this verity: "I take it as a matter not to be disputed, that if
all knew what each said of the other, there would not be four friends in the
world. This seems proved by the quarrels and disputes caused by the disclosures
which are occasionally made." The busybodies are parasites who go about stinging
the innocent with veiled but spiteful venom. Let us beware of the one who is
busy with everyone else's business. Paul gives excellent advice to Timothy:
"Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called
knowledge..." (1 Timothy 6:20).

One last thought: the word “busybodies” denotes busy in useless and superfluous
things, trifles. Instead of occupying ourselves with our duties, we busy
ourselves about matters which are fruitless and we become useless branches cut
off from the Vine.

Patricia Erwin Nordman, Walking Through the Darkness

The Prodigal Brother

The Brother

One commentator calls this brother the narrow-minded saint. We Christians may be more inclined to be the older brother, for we are spared the gross sins of life. Also, the older brother may have felt that he was the only one who really had the family's (God's) interests at heart. Elijah thought he was the only person left in the world to do God's bidding but God informed him there were 7000 others out there who hadn't bent the knee to Baal. We are so foolish at times.

"The elder brother is very unpopular -- in the parable. He is not unpopular in society, and he has many descendants. He is sometimes an officer in the church, a leader in reform groups, a `key citizen.' He thinks, or wills to think, that all other races are `inferior.' A man out of work is simply unemployable: `I was always able to find work, and always worked hard.' A prodigal like the younger son is just a wastrel: `Actually you can do nothing with them,' he says. He has `no patience with people who squander time and money,' especially money. Any neighbor of progressive mind is to him `a dangerous element in the community.' When disaster falls on the righteous, he doubts if `it pays to be good,' for he is sure that goodness ought to `pay.' Friedrich W. Krummacher has an honest and penetrating comment. A questioner asked his opinion of the identity of the elder brother. He replied: 'I learned it only yesterday ... myself.'" (Anon.)

"Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. `Your brother has come,' he replied, `and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound'" (Luke 15:25-27). "The older brother became angry and refused to go in" (Luke 15:28). He wouldn't go in! How often we stay out of the Father's house because we are angry. We may have children who have left home for a time because they are so upset with us. They're going to show us. But they get cold and hungry and come home. We return to the Father's house, too, when we are cold from the world's indifference and we are hungry for spiritual warmth. Some of us are petulant enough to stay out of the Father's house because someone said something nasty to us in church. Many a pastor laments church squabbles over petty things said and done to and at each other. Or we won't go to the Father's house because the pastor doesn't come often enough to see us. We can conjure up legions of reasons for not going into our Father's house.

"So his father went out and pleaded with him" (Luke 15:28b). The elder brother here represents the Pharisees in their moral correctness and exclusiveness. The father wanted to win over the elder son and, in telling this parable, Jesus wanted to win over the misdirected Pharisees. "Is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles, too? Yes, of Gentiles, too ... " (Romans 3:29). "No true saint will look coldly on a poor sinner who staggers to the mercy seat" (W.G. Pascoe).

Jesus did not approve of the Pharisees' excessive devotion to the letter of the Divine Law and to the proud traditions of their race and to their misplaced patriotism. Even so, he treated them with a gentle love. The father is kind with this self-righteous, stern and unloving son, also. This son may be in greater need for his sin is less discernible. He is consumed with jealousy, feeling that the fatted calf for his brother made this sinful brother not just his equal but his superior.

This elder son no doubt believed that the father really loved the prodigal more than he did the son who stayed home. The son who remained with the father didn't seem to realize that there never was extraordinary cause for joy; all these years it had been a quiet, stable relationship. In the long run of life, this is the better way. The elder brother couldn't grasp that there is no deprivation to the virtuous in consequence of kindness shown to sinners. Relating this to family life, one child will need more help during a period of his or her life. This does not diminish the love for another child. That child, too, will receive help in his or her time of need. But it is so difficult to convince the child who feels left out that his or her turn is coming.

"But he answered his father, `Look! All these years I've been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders ... '" (Luke 15:29). "`All these I have kept,' the young man said. `What do I still lack?'" (Matthew 19:20); "The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: `God, I thank you that I am not like other men -- robbers, evildoers, adulterers -- or even like this tax collector" (Luke 18:11). It is well to remember that Jesus chose a tax collector, Matthew, for one of his disciples! The brother was in his own far country of anger, jealousy, condemnation, pride, gross ingratitude and petulance. We have here the attitude of the self-righteous toward the unrighteous. Those who think highly of themselves think hardly of others. These folk are hung up on the quid pro quos of life; there's no giving or forgiving; we get what we deserve, both good and bad. He did not have the same sins, but big brother had sins, too, and, in the long run of life, they may have been worse sins.

Here is the self-righteous person who has long served God and been kept from the gross sins of life. For this reason, he or she has no understanding of the "younger brothers" in life, those who have fallen and are trying to arise and get back to the Father. It is the Righteous Ones who sometimes get in the way of the sinners and who keep them from arising. If anything, it is these very ones, the Righteous Ones, who should have the most humility and gratitude, because they have been kept people. They did not break through the hedge God so lovingly placed around them. Within this verse, also, is the concept of servant/friend. This older brother was not his father's friend for he so stated, "All these years I have been serving you ... " Apparently he did not stay out of any devotion he felt toward his father. Here is yet another outrage against the father who didn't merit this ruthless treatment. The younger son is beginning to look like a saint.

" ... And yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends" (V.29). There's no please or thank you recorded here, either, for the many years of living in his father's house and having access to all the good things. This elder brother is also saying to his father, "You owe me." He, too, lays a debt on the Father. The younger brother said, "Give me ... " The older brother said, "You never gave me ... " The one demands and the other accuses, so both have sinned. This poor father got it with both barrels. And this older brother wanted to make merry with his friends, not his family.

"But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!" (Luke 15:30). This bitter brother won't acknowledge his younger brother. He is disrespectful to his father as he scornfully says to him, "This son of yours ... " Big Brother doesn't hesitate to point out that his little brother has been cavorting with prostitutes, too. He is intent on rubbing the dirt in the father's face. After all, he stayed home all these years and he has been a good boy! At this time he can't realize the hostility that is gnawing away his own substance. To mention the transgressions of his brother's life at such a time as this is very bad taste, let alone a total lack of generosity and humility. "That love is great to cover faults, and to develop the most unpromising germs of goodness. It is not expended in the single effort of forgiveness, but has reserves of force to transform, purify, and elevate" (Anon.).

The father quietly replies: "My son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours" (Luke 15:31). There are no restrictions or exclusions here; the older brother has always had access to the father's gifts (we forget these are gifts and not something that is due us). It is love that says, All I have is yours; it is law that says, You owe me. We are all older brothers and sisters in great need of unconditional love for each other, a love that is definitive and infinite. It is agape love that says, "No matter what you do or say, I will love you never-the-less." God had His neverthelesses, too: "Nevertheless, I will bring health and healing to it; I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security" (Jeremiah 33:6).

"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 15:31). The elder brother contemptuously told his father , "This son of yours," so the father reminded his elder son that this was also his brother. "Am I my brother's keeper?" we can almost hear this puritanical, confused and rude young man say. There is something about this older brother that makes the younger brother less lost and more appealing. This poor older brother is a non-conductor in society; the power of love doesn't pass through him to others who so need encouragement and the nourishment of mercy. Perhaps the brother, whose faithful though grudging life had been quiet, was resentful of his younger brother's sudden joy; after all, he had stayed with his father and he had lived a quite commendable life, or so he thought. Then this upstart sinner comes home and all the excitement revolves around him.

How many of us have worked hard and faithfully, only to have the glory go to someone else. An elderly minister has worked for years with his deaf and seemingly dumb flock, and an assistant comes in who reaps their affection; the pastor works quietly and patiently with an unbeliever for years, and he is converted at a revival meeting; a friend's child is devout while ours, in spite of all our prayers and love, goes on his merry way; an employee works hard and is loyal, and when he or she retires, the new employee starts out with a higher salary and more benefits; the list is endless of the seeming inequities of life. "What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants ... as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow" (1 Corinthians 3:5,6). Jealousies and partisanships don't belong in a Christian's life. We can rise above these hurts and grow into another task God has for us. It also helps to remember, "Not to us, O Lord, not us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness" (Psalm 115:1). This should weed out the unnecessary pride we feel in our work and, therefore, any hurt we may feel over another's success. "You did not choose me, but I chose you to go and bear fruit" (John 15:16). We are to bear our own fruit; we are not to worry about what fruit another bears. If we want to waste God's time considering the injustices of life, then let us "Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that [we] will not grow weary and lose heart" (Hebrews 12:3).

And let us celebrate and be glad, for we were dead and now we are alive again; we were lost and now we are found! Thank You, Father!

The Prodigal Son

Years ago, for a few months I was the Friday guest on our local radio; that was religion day! We did a two-parter on what we called The Prodigals. An elder in my church heard about the programs and asked me to give a sermon on The Prodigals; this is the result. Luke 15 is one of my favorite chapters in the Bible, for it is the Gospel. Imagine, our Father running to us in such love, in spite of our sins!

 

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Jesus talked about the ordinary things of life: prodigal sons, yeast, fishing, lost sheep, etc. He used everyday illustrations to give us profound and eternally-applicable principles. In one of the most profound chapters of the Bible, Jesus told us about truth and love and hope, and He used ordinary illustrations that the average person could understand, for Jesus loved -- and loves -- us average people.

In Luke 15:1-2, "[T]he Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, `This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.'" It was beyond their comprehension that the man who claimed to be the Son of God could so love those who the Pharisees labeled and libeled as weak and immoral and ordinary, heaven forbid. Only they were worthy of God's love. In this passage Jesus tells the world for all time that He is our Friend who seeks us to save us, for we are all lost sinners. He says to each of us, "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice, then open the door, and I will come in and eat with you, and you with me." (Revelation 3:20.)

In this chapter there are not three but four losses: the lost sheep, the lost silver, the lost son, and the lost sympathy of the older brother. We've heard about the first three, but we don't often consider the lost sympathy. This is also the glorious chapter of the found. Here is Jesus Christ's immortal lesson about unconditional and self-sacrificing love.

In each parable the reason for the loss was different:

1) The sheep were heedless. "The farmer came down the lane. `Got a stray,' he said. `How do they get lost?' asked the city man. `They just nibble themselves lost,' said the farmer; `they keep their heads down, wander from one green tuft to another, come to a hole in the fence -- and never can find a hole by which to get back again.' The city man answered, `Like people, every generation of foolish men.'" (Anon.).  It's so easy to nibble, with our heads bowed, looking for more. Before we know it, we're tripping over tufts on our own turf.

2) The drachma did not lose itself but, by the law of gravitation, rolled into a dark corner. The way the world is turning today, it's too easy to tumble into shady corners and lose ourselves with borderline buddies and provocative paperbacks and dirty dramas and soap operas, all of which stir our cauldron of sensations and finally make us broken cisterns. God misses us when we are looking for excitement in the dark corners of our life. It hurts him if we are even temporarily lost to him and to his purpose in life for us, for God wants us with him all the time. He suffers when he loses his sheep.

3) The third cause was rebellion against a father's love. There were many losses in this particular parable, for the father and both sons lost something, and the two brothers lost something precious, too. This is a tender parable of the unrighteous prodigal son, the righteous father whose love and devotion are truly remarkable, and the self-righteous older brother who refused to have anything to do with his unrighteous younger brother. This young man's story is as fascinating as that of the so-called prodigal son and just as sad.

In these three parables we have varying proportions of possession and loss: a hundred, ten, two; a seeming trifle, then more serious, then heartbreak. “There is something in human nature which makes anything that is lost precious by reason of its loss. Its absolute value may be little; its relative worth is great. Divine love goes after, not the greatest world, but the lost world.” (Anon.)

One would think that one out of a hundred wouldn't matter so much but to God it does. The Shepherd is painfully aware that one is missing, even though there are 99 left. Then the coin represents a great loss, relatively, to the poor woman who hasn't much money. Most of us can relate to this woman when we are paying bills. And of course the loss of the son is the ultimate; the return is the ultimate, too. If we have lost a child, in whatever way, we can identify with this. Our Lord gave these three parables as one, to show how God, as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit "receives sinners" and fellowships with us.

1) The Son, like the shepherd, seeks the lost that he might save us: "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost" (Luke 19:10); "Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after it until he finds it?"(Luke 15:4b). Until he finds us! There is no check here of love and effort; instead, he lets us sign a check in whatever amount we want of his love, for his bank is open twenty-four hours a day, but we have to sign the check. What a comfort to know that his deposit of love is always there.

2) The Spirit, like the woman, seeks the lost that he might use us. Lost persons are lost to usefulness and all the good that might come of that usefulness. "But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit . . . will teach you all things" (John 14:26). There is vincible and invincible ignorance. For the Christian there is no excuse for invincible ignorance, for we have the Holy Spirit and the Word. The Spirit is ready to teach us when we are ready to listen.

3) God, like the father in the parable, seeks the lost that he might have fellowship with us: "And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ" (1 John 1:3); "May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all" (2 Corinthians 13:14). It encourages us to know that we are the only one to God the Father, the Holy Spirit and the Son. God does not see the mass of men but the mess of a man. Jesus finds the lost and leads us into the fold with the Shepherd's crook that became a cross. "He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart ..." (Isaiah 40:11). Our gracious God neither drags us behind Him nor drives us ahead of Him, but He lifts us and carries us: "But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself" (John 12:32). On heart- and head-aching days, what a grand visual this is!

GIVE ME MY PORTION

In this chapter, Luke 15, and particularly v.24, is the Gospel and the song of salvation: "For this son of mine was dead, and is alive again; he was lost and is found." In The Prodigal Heart, Susan Ertz, the author, points out that the prodigal younger son was prodigal in body but at least part of his heart was always at home; the elder brother was prodigal at heart but his body was at home.

"There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said, `Father, give me my share of the estate.'" (Luke 15:11,12). Not even a please or thank you is recorded here. This boy is saying to his father, "You owe me." Just like us: "God, you owe me a good life." We lay a debt on God; we forget that everything is a gift from God, even waking up in the morning to a new day and a fresh agenda: "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it" (Psalm 118:24). This is the way to start the day, in thanksgiving.

This young man wanted to get away from his father and what his father represented: authority. He wanted the liberty to take license. And the father did not reproach him (this is a major message throughout this chapter) but he gave his son his portion. He would not force his beloved son into compulsory obedience and dependence. God wills not to force his will on us. "My Spirit will not contend with man forever" (Genesis 6:3). God finally leaves us to our own devices. "Let us break His chain and throw off His fetters," we cry. (Psalm 2:3.) Fortunately, the son eventually was to learn a lifelong lesson that true life is lived in gratitude, not gratification.

God answers sharp and sudden on some prayers;

And flings the thing we have asked in our face,
A gauntlet -- with a gift in it.
E.B. Browning.

"Not long after that . . . [he] set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living." (V.13). Winston Churchill (the American Churchill!) wrote a novel titled A Far Country. In this novel, the far country is that alien land of the loss of standards and ideals. We too can be in an alien land of desire for fame, wealth, things, popularity and knowledge rather than wisdom. All of these can be the far country, away from the Father who wants us to be happy with Him. We can't live in the far country for very long without great longings for a noble land.

"And there squandered his wealth." This soul, this son so precious to his father, had everything and lost everything. We throw away minutes, thoughts, hopes, dreams and loves without realizing what treasures they are. They seem so trivial at the time but, when we can no longer retrieve them -- when minutes have become years -- we surely regret the waste.

Sin is the greatest spiritual waste of all. There is a double waste here: that of what we have had and that which we might have been and done. There's much too much waste today. The daily papers are filled with the sweepings and dissipations of spirit and mind and body. God made us for noble ends: "But the noble man makes noble plans, and by noble deeds he stands" (Isaiah 32:8 NIV). What a lovely verse! Some synonyms for noble are ethical, high-minded, respectable, trustworthy, compassionate and conscientious. They sound like a description of Christ and Christ-like people.

"Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. He said to Jacob, `Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I'm famished!' Jacob replied, `First sell me your birthright.' `Look, I am about to die,' Esau said. `What good is the birthright to me?'" (Genesis 25:29-32). The prodigal son also sold his birth privileges for a mess of pods fit only for pigs. Notice both Esau and this son said, "Quick, let me have ..." Human nature is basically the same until Jesus touches us and gives us a new heart of discernment about what we really need in life. "Quick, Lord, let me have a new and patient heart and mind." We live in an instant age which isn't exactly an insightful age. Let us pray as did Solomon, "Give your servant a discerning heart. . .to distinguish between right and wrong" (1 Kings 3:9). The rest of life seems to take care of itself after a prayer like that. There is another point here for our youth: this young man left with all this money and no purpose for his life. What a setup for a letdown. It's difficult enough for a young person to leave home but this young man left with nothing but his own desires and devices in mind. What a disastrous combination!

"After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need" (V.14); " ... But no one gave him anything" (V.16). The friends who collected around the prodigal son while he was squandering his inheritance left him, and his father wasn't around to give to him anymore. Does this sound familiar? There is a severe famine of friends, hope, love, faith, all the substance that really matters in life, when we sell our inheritance for the pottage of immediate satisfaction. When misfortune came his way, the prodigal son had no spiritual resources to meet his misery. He was homeless and friendless. He who had been priceless was now worthless, or so he must have thought. He bartered God's gold for the world's gild and found it to be most illusive and impractical. "How the gold has lost its luster, the fine gold become dull!" (Lamentations 4:1). Moral degradation turns gold into dross, the precious gem into a dull and now flawed paragon of mediocrity. We lose character and stability and influence when we have lost our spiritual luster. The cynical Lord Byron wrote a poem this young man could have written:

My days are in the yellow leaf;

The flowers and fruits of love are gone;
The worm, the anguish, and the grief,
Are mine alone.

The fire that on my bosom preys

Is lone as some volcanic isle;
No torch it kindles at its blaze --
A funeral pile!

"So he went out and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs" (Luke 15:15). He was too proud to go home; he wasn't hungry enough yet. A citizen of that country took note of the young stranger and took him in. "`That citizen,' says St. Bernard, quoted by Archbishop Trench, `I cannot understand as other than one of the malignant spirits, who in that they sin with an irremediable obstinacy, and have passed into a permanent disposition of malice and wickedness, are no longer guests and strangers, but citizens and abiders in the land of sin.'" It is best to stay strangers of the far country. "Lot . . . pitched his tents near Sodom" (Genesis 13:12). It was a bad move. And to feed swine! This was the lowest form of employment for, to the principled and refined Israelites, a pig was an unclean creature that they wouldn't even name, calling it "the other thing." How ironic that this swine he was reduced to feeding should have more value than he who now cared for them. But that is the way of the world: the glitter turns to bitter. It is then we realize that God's love is lavish; the world's is slavish. The feeding of the swine is indicative of the final course of sin: we are forced to do what we never thought we would have to do. It is degradation at the end of our course of what we thought would bring us happiness which we have mistaken for joy.

“When he came to his senses...” (Luke 15:17). Ah! this hungry and hopeless young man recovered his senses because his senses of touch, taste, hearing, sight and smell had been assaulted. "Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more" (Ephesians 4:19); "[We who insist on our own way] are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless" (Romans 1:31). Our excessive son got tired of it for he still had sensitivity to what is good. As Susan Ertz said, part of his heart was still at home. He finally realized that he had willingly left the home of a loving father to become the slave of a hard taskmaster. Sin will do that. It was finally body hunger, the physical sense of hunger, not soul hunger at this point, which brought the son to his senses. It would have been more noble had he felt the soul hunger first, but God works in mysterious and different ways with us all. We can't judge the how but only be grateful for the why and when of another's conversion. It is far better to enter the father's house with bowed head than not enter at all. We personally live in a comfortable world and it's difficult for us to understand that sometimes we have to notice another's body hunger before we can help their spiritual hunger.

"I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: `Father, I have sinned against heaven and you ... " (Luke 15:18). "So he got up and went to his father." (V.20a). "I will arise" (v.18) ..."And he arose" (v.20). We have here determination followed by demonstration, evidence of his repentance. He arose, he didn't waste time just wishing he could do something about it, but he moved toward this intense goal of cleaning up his life. The son chose to leave his father's house and finally chose to leave that choice -- so we don't have to stay with bad choices. The son chose to leave in rebellion and he chose to return in submission. Life is filled with options and remedies.

"But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.' (Luke 15:20). How can we not be touched to our core! Herein is the kiss of pardon. The father gave the kiss before his son said a word. It was given while the prodigal was still dirty and in rags; therefore, it was entirely unmerited. This first blessing was followed by many others. Not a word of reproach is spoken. How important this is for those of us who speak words of reproach to God's children because they may not do and speak as we do.

This is the story of our Father who runs to us while we are yet far away and when we are desperate after having tasted of the husks of life and are tired of searching for what is real and true. The son tells his father that he is not worthy but that does not stop the father from loving him and forgiving him and bringing out the best of what he has, to give to his precious son who has come home. Our Father runs to us and gives us His best -- anyway! Can we engrave this bright verse on our sad hearts as a beacon light for those days when we feel that not even the Father loves us? When we feel we don't deserve anyone's love. . . .?

"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). Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight (Psalm 51:4). The father didn't seem to notice the young man's confession. He was so happy to have his son back that, for now, he seems to overlook the young man's confession in his rush to welcome the boy.

"But the father said to his servants, `Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. FOR THIS SON OF MINE WAS DEAD AND IS ALIVE AGAIN; HE WAS LOST AND IS FOUND.' So they began to celebrate." This should take away our very breath! Everything is done to assure this precious son that he is welcome and forgiven in full. This beloved son doesn't need to pay off any debts to the father, for the father has loved away the debt. This son will not be put into temporary moral seclusion and told to pay off by word or deed the debt he now owes his father. The father is not going to demand his pound of flesh from this boy whose concern was catering to the flesh. This isn't to say that he condoned what his son did, but he forgives in grave silence.

OUR PORTION

And this is our portion, too: the Father's love and forgiveness. It is Jesus Himself. God gave us His Son that we might be sons and daughters of God and live in His house for eternity. If we truly believe this, then we don't need to demand any other portion from God or man. We don't need to wander into any far countries of excitement to search for any other treasures, for God has given and will yet give the greatest treasures: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him ... " (1 Corinthians 2:9; Isaiah 64:4).

"Quick!" Jesus says, "bring the robe of righteousness that these my sons and daughters may exchange their filthy rags and be invested with a new natures; Quick! bring shoes for their feet that they may not be servants but my sons and daughters; Quick! bring the Bread of Life that they may be strengthened to feast on my love. This is Jesus’ "quick": to give and to save; "Quick, let my children have all that I have." Here is God's "quick" of total love and forgiveness and generosity, so different from our "Quick, give me." "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" (Matthew 6:33).

 

(Next: The Prodigal Brother - not as long, I promise!)

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Happy Mother's Day, Beloved Sons and Daughters!
(Written in 1975 to my five sons, and now my beloved Daughters-in-law!)

My precious children!

How can I put into words the joy that is in my heart this Mother's Day? I must confess that so many times I have knelt in the dark of yet another day's end, begging God's forgiveness for my failures with you: my abruptness, harsh words, the ears that hear but tune out your silent pleas for understanding, the eyes that don't see the hurts of your little hearts, the omissions of simple pleasures and commissions of parental sins. I beg your forgiveness! I want to give you something this Mother's Day: a will of hope and a testament of God's love and mine.

I want to pass on to you a sustaining faith that will support you through your lives. My dear ones, I won't always be with you on the earth. You will go through crucibles of sorrows and trials. Don't allow them to defeat you! Some are tried in the furnace of affliction. Perhaps God will choose to refine you in this way because He wants to see His image restored in you. No matter what happens to you, praise, love, and thank your Saviour always. He has promised His strength to those who wait on Him. Man may fail, you may fail at times, but your loving Father will never fail you. I haven't always given you what you wanted--perhaps not even what you needed. I pray God will be the Sufficiency for my lacks, the Gentleness for my impatience, the Compassion for my misunderstandings, the Calm for my restlessness.

Dear ones, I want for you what God wants for you. He wants you to be His heroes, armed with faith, purity, and humility in a disbelieving, pleasure-seeking, vain world that has no time nor love for its gracious Creator. How sad! You have come into the world for such a time as this because God wants you to reflect His care and love to those who will cross your path of life. Fame and riches mean nothing. I beg you not to seek them! It may be that God will put you forward, but it will only be because He has a great work for you. But if He gives much He will expect much in return. Don't disappoint your beautiful Saviour! I thank you, dear precious gifts, for giving my life an eternal dimension--for giving me something to live, work, and strive for. You have inspired me and I love you deeply.

Happy Mother's Day!

Ten best excuses when caught napping at your desk!

10. "They told me at the blood bank this might happen."

9. "This is just a 15 minute power-nap like they raved about in that time management course you sent me to."

8. "Whew! Guess I left the top off the White-Out. You probably got here just in time."

7. "I wasn't sleeping! I was meditating on the mission statement and envisioning a new paradigm."

6. "I was testing my keyboard for drool resistance."

5. "I was doing a highly specific Yoga exercise to relieve work-related stress. Are you discriminating toward people who practice Yoga?”

4. "Why did you interrupt me? I had almost figured out a solution to our biggest problem."

3. "The coffee machine is broken..."

2. "Someone must've put decaf in the wrong pot..."

And the #1 best thing to say if you get caught sleeping at your desk...

1. " ... in Jesus' name. Amen."

Anonymous

The Bill of Non-Rights

The following has been attributed to former State Representative Mitchell Kaye:

"We the sensible people of the United States, in an attempt to help everyone get along, restore some semblance of justice, avoid more riots, keep our nation safe, promote positive behavior, and secure the blessings of debt free liberty to ourselves and our great-great-great-grandchildren, hereby try one more time to ordain and establish some common sense guidelines for the terminally whiny, guilt-ridden, delusional, and other liberal bed-wetters.

We hold these truths to be self evident: that a whole lot of people are confused by the Bill of Rights and they are so dim they require a Bill of NO Rights."

ARTICLE I: You do not have the right to a new car, big screen TV, or any other form of wealth. More power to you if you can legally acquire them, but no one is guaranteeing anything.

ARTICLE II: You do not have the right to never be offended. This country is based on freedom, and that means freedom for everyone, not just you! You may leave the room, turn the channel, express a different opinion, etc.; but the world is full of idiots, and probably always will be.

ARTICLE III: You do not have the right to be free from harm. If you stick a screwdriver in your eye, learn to be more careful,; do not expect the tool manufacturer to make you and all your relatives independently wealthy.

ARTICLE IV: You do not have the right to free food and housing. Americans are the most charitable people to be found and will gladly help anyone in need, but we are quickly growing weary of subsidizing generation after generation of professional couch potatoes who achieve nothing more than the creation of another generation of professional couch potatoes.

ARTICLE V: You do not have the right to free health care. That would be nice, but from the looks of public housing, we're just not interested in public health care.

ARTICLE VI: You do not have the right to physically harm other people. If you kidnap, rape, intentionally maim, or kill someone, don't be surprised if the rest of us want to see you fry in the electric chair.

ARTICLE VII: You do not have the right to the possessions of others. If you rob, cheat, or coerce away the goods or services of other citizens, don't be surprised if the rest of us get together and lock you away in a place where you still won't have the right to a big screen color TV or a life of leisure.

ARTICLE VIII: You do not have the right to a job. All of us sure want you to have a job, and will gladly help you along in hard times, but we expect you to take advantage of the opportunities of education and vocational training laid before you to make yourself useful.

ARTICLE IX: You do not have the right to happiness. Being an American means that you have the right to PURSUE happiness which, by the way, is a lot easier if you are unencumbered by an over-abundance of idiotic laws created by those of you who were confused by the Bill of Rights.

ARTICLE X: This is an English-speaking country. We don't care where you are from, English is our language. Learn it or go back to wherever you came from.

(lastly....)

ARTICLE XI: You do not have the right to change our country's history or heritage. This country was founded on the belief in one true God. And yet, you are given the freedom to believe in any religion, any faith, or no faith at all; with no fear of persecution. The phrase IN GOD WE TRUST is part of our heritage and history, and if you are uncomfortable with it, TOUGH!!!!