“How did he turn out that way?” my teenaged son asks. We’re standing at the kitchen table. On summer vacation in Arizona.
He’s distressed. Witnessing up close the rage and deceit of someone he’s trusted and admired. The downhill slide is shocking.
“It probably started with one lie,” I say. “Then another. And another. Until finally he was living a lie.”
What I do not know at the time of that conversation will come to light a month later. The fact that our son has been lying to us. For a while.
And has moved to “a far country” of deceit fueled by anxiety. Even as he lives within the four walls of our home.
Prodigal.
The father of lies is after his very soul.
Crying out
A few years earlier, in 2012, we’re living in Delhi. And our son is not doing well. Something is wrong. The medical diagnosis never feels complete.
We can’t quite put our finger on what the problem is.
What is it?
I cry out to the Father. Looking for answers.
Four answers
Over the course of several months, during early morning times with the Lord, I carry my questions to Him. And ask what to do. How to pray.
The answers come at various times. But clearly enough that I write them in my journal. On a special page.
Four specific bullet points.
1. Wait. Wait on the Lord.
The first on the list is from a psalm of David. Whose writings often give voice to my heart cry. I meditated on this verse in my college days. And have recalled it frequently through the years.
One day it rises to my thoughts as I ask for help. “Wait for the Lord. Be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord” (Psalm 27:14).
Feeling the silence
In days following, I’m reading Isaiah. One morning I read about the greatness of our God. How there is no comparison to the Holy One.
Then I come to this. “Jacob, why do you say, and Israel, why do you assert: ‘My way is hidden from the Lord, and my claim is ignored by my God’?”
Tears come to my eyes.
This is how I feel, Lord. There is silence. I’m sitting in the dark.
The familiar, yet new
I continue reading. It’s like a passage I’ve never seen before. I’m thirsty for it. “He gives strength to the faint and strengthens the powerless.” I am faint and powerless, Lord.
Then. Suddenly. I realize where I’m reading. The passage so familiar. Yet new for this moment.
“Youths may become faint and weary,
and young men stumble and fall,
but those who wait upon the Lord
will renew their strength;
they will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not become weary,
they will walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:30-31).
Wait. Wait on the Lord.
Yes, Lord.
2. Devote yourself to prayer
The asking continues.
On January 2, 2013, I’m seeking a verse for the new year. Colossians 4:2 comes to the forefront. “Devote yourselves to prayer; stay alert in it with thanksgiving.”
“Lord, what does it mean to be devoted to prayer?” To continue steadfastly in prayer, as it appears in other translations.
And this begins a journey of seeing the “always” of prayer in the Word of God. In everything. Continually. At all times. (See Pray continually for more details about that journey.)
The emphasis is unmistakable.
Pray. Pray. Pray.
After the spiritual armor is detailed in Ephesians 6, Paul gives a directive to “Pray…pray…pray” in the next verses. Verse 18 is particularly helpful to me as I learn how to be devoted to prayer.
“Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request and stay alert with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints.”
The repetition is clear. All. Every. All. All.
And it’s not in my strength. But in the Holy Spirit. He counsels and equips us to pray.
There’s an urgency in the spiritual battle to stay alert in this.
I take note.
Co-laborers in prayer
In Ephesians 6:19-20, Paul asks the believers to pray specifically for him.
At the time, we have a prayer team we communicate with monthly. And there are friends like family nearby who come alongside. Faithfully. Lovingly.
They listen. Wait. And pray.
Those who wait today
As I write, I’m deeply aware that many suffer in the unknown as they pray for their prodigals. Waiting with no end in sight. Wondering if there’s any hope he or she will turn and follow the One who loves them so.
I’m crying out to the Father even now for a friend whose prodigal has been far from home for 20 years. Literally and figuratively. And has not been seen or heard from in seven years.
So today I remember. And pray. And wait.
To be continued
1. Wait. Wait on the Lord.
2. Be devoted to prayer.
In the next blogpost I will share the other two answers listed in my journal from that season. For it was a season.
Even though the years felt like forever at the time.
What about you?
How have you prayed for a prodigal child or family member or friend? What have you learned in times of waiting?
Related posts
Pray continually – Waiting for the Lord – Broken bowl and the Potter – Parenting teens – Parenting in the spiritual battle – Brokenness – What are we to do? – On the way to thankfulness –
20 replies on “Prodigal, part 1”
YES! Prayer and waiting and trusting God’s goodness is WELL beyond my imagination are the daily desires of my heart. Speaking to myself in love when others use angry words…
Amen. Lifting you up, sister.
Praying for my prodigal for 17 years, haven’t seen him in 6. Praying without ceasing is the hardest job. I used to pray for him to return to us. Now my prayer is refined: that he know and love God. For that is the longing of my heart.
O sister, yes. I pray this tonight for your prodigal too. Grace to you as you pray and wait.
Thanks for this message! A lot of us have the struggles with prodigal children. We are in that place now as well. Praying with you!!!
Thank you for sharing. Grace to you all in the waiting.
I’m trusting my prodigal to God. “Salvation belongs to the Lord.” Psalm 3:8. It is not in my hands nor ever was. My hope is in Christ alone to bring about change and to turn the heart toward the Savior.
I’ve living and learning to walk in joy every single day with my times of tears and heavy heart-laying every.single.morning before I walk in obedience, serving, working and joyfully serving my Lord knowing that He is able.
A beautiful testimony of trusting Him with your prodigal. Learning to walk in joy. Thank you!
I tried to post a message it it didn’t go through. I’m trying now to see if this one does.
It takes a little while because I have to approve new commenters…but it should post now. Grace to you, sister, in this hard road. Great is His faithfulness.
We waited for many years for our prodigal to return. Some even told us he would return, but it’s hard to believe when you’re not fully trusting Him to move in his heart. He was faithful even when we weren’t. We are so thankful for His answers to the prayers of many for him. We will forever be so very grateful for His grace in loving our child. Praying for all of those who are waiting for their prodigal to return.
Thank you for sharing your story, friend. I too am grateful that He was faithful even when I failed.
Recently I heard a message on “In the Fullness of Time” from Galatians 4:4 which really spoke to my heart. There is one I have been praying for several years and it was just as though God said to me, “In the fullness of time you are going to see the answer for which you have longed prayed.” God’s timing is so perfect.
Amen. His timing IS perfect. Thank you for sharing His word to you, dear sister. It strengthens and encourages us.
Thank you for this post and opening the door to an area that is painful to walk. We have been praying for our prodigal and will be asking the Father for these other prodigal as well.
That is my hope. That we will all stop and pray for each one mentioned. Lifting up yours just now.
I’ve been praying for my adult children for many years. One is sitting in jail and has 2 little girls. I grieve but cling to hope in Jesus. The other 3 are lost as well. I try to cast my cares on Jesus and long for the day they surrender to Him.
Lifting up your prodigals to the Father just now. Grace to you on this difficult road.
So helpful and encouraging to hear Jonathan’s story of redemption, Susan. [Thank you, Jonathan, for sharing your story and for giving praise to the Father for His love, salvation, and faithfulness in your life.] Praying for my family’s prodigal son (and daughter) … waiting to celebrate with them when they experience His grace in their own lives.
Yes. Today I’m praying for your family’s prodigals. He sees and knows…