Every day it was the same. The old man would rise early, say his prayers, and then walk out to the gate to gaze down the same dusty track that held his most painful memory.
His youngest son had walked down that track and over the far hills, pursuing a foolish and youthful dream. By now his inheritance was surely gone and his shattered pride would bring him back … if he survived the big city after all. By now, he must realize that life at its highest and best is lived at home. The father shakes his head in disbelief, “I never imagined that he would stay gone so long.” The sun is up and responsibilities move him back to the business that once gave him joy … now it just marks time. He’ll walk out to the gate again just after noon, and again to watch until sunset. Some would say the kid deserves a bitter taste of the big bad world. Others would tell the old man to get on with his own good life. But his heart is for his son, and nothing can pull him away from the gate.
So it is with our Heavenly Father who has so often been rejected for the fleeting delights of some “far country.” He has every right to forget and move on, but this Father’s heart is for His children too, and as long as there is life, He’ll be standing at the gate … watching and waiting.
“So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.”
Luke 15:20 NASB1995
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