The Younger One
We all know the story. I will not attempt to give you a different version or new insight into the story of the "lost son," more commonly known as the Prodigal Son. I will focus on two particular points in this young man's journey. A journey that included squandering what his father had accumulated and wasting his life on the stuff of no eternal value, ultimately culminating in pigs being treated better than himself. I hope these two points will help us gain insight.
The first point in the prodigal's journey is when he wasted all he took and faced trial by famine. The Prodigal Son parable shared by Jesus and recounted in Luke's gospel does not explain why this impetuous young man decided to take his inheritance early and spend it in debauchery. But we know he asked his father for "his share of the estate." The father gave it to him. The result of this action could have been called a mile away. The young, foolish boy spent it all. After completing that marvelously stupid feat, a famine hit the land where he lived. Now, we have a foolish young man with no money and no sustenance who took what was intended to help him in the future and squandered it in his ignorance, facing starvation and deprivation in a foreign land.
When need is felt and senses are gained is when we understand that we need to go home to the Father.
At this point, Jesus tells us, "he [the prodigal son] began to be in need." There it is. This is a pivotal moment in this youth's life, as it is in every person's life who faces such a scenario. Jesus refers not only to the external circumstances the prodigal found himself in but also to the internal emotions and attitude that the boy was experiencing. This son had acted brashly and wasted away what was his to inherit. He had indulged himself in "wild living." Now, he was having a change of attitude. The boy was feeling needy - but more importantly, vulnerable. He was coming to the realization that this life thing is for real, and it can kick you right in your posterior if you screw around.
When humans come to the point of "being in need, " we change our situation. When we realize the danger of deprivation, we start making new life choices. The prodigal son in Jesus' parable was no different. He woke up from his drunken stupor in need, so he farmed himself out to a local farmer and started feeding pigs. There are too many things wrong with this situation to detail them. Suffice it to say that the famine did not disappear, and the employer did not pay very well. Being needy made this young man industrious to a degree. But like most young people who do stupid stuff, the prodigal could not solve his problems. He stayed where he was and tried to make a go of it - in a FAMINE! No one helped the kid out, and he found himself starving, even with a job.
Then, we come to the second focus point in this parable. Jesus tells us that the young man was so hungry that he wanted to eat the pigs' slop. Then the prodigal "came to his senses." There it is. When we come to our senses under challenging situations, we find solutions to our problems. This coming to senses experienced by the Prodigal Son could also be interpreted as the point where the foolish boy took real account of where he was and what he had done. This is when he honestly inspected his actions, truthfully calculated the friends he had (or rather did not have), and understood the danger of being in a famine while in a foreign land. The guy was in serious jeopardy! If he did not change, he would starve among foreigners who did not care about him. It made no sense. It never did, but the fool now understood it.
To come to our senses, we must do away with our pride and realize we do not have the answer. We need help. Like the prodigal son, we are at risk of dying in a foreign land if we do not get a real solution to the problem of our sin. Or maybe salvation has already been received, but we are rebelling against the Savior who gave His life for us. In either case, pride will keep you away from your senses and your deliverance. Whether we like it or not, the solution is to take on humility and acknowledge that our Heavenly Father is the answer we need. The prodigal son came to this conclusion, and once he did, he could go home to the father. We can do the same.
I don't know where you are right now in your journey through life. But just in case you have been in need and are coming to your senses, let me encourage you. Don't stop your journey back to your Heavenly Father. Drop the pride and foolishness. Admit your sin and ask Him for help. I assure you, like the father in the parable was waiting on his son, God Almighty is waiting for you. If you approach Him in true humility and need, He will see you and run to you. He will embrace you, kiss you, and He will celebrate with His child who has returned home.