Sidetracked
“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” - Hebrews 10:23
If we want to follow Christ with a divine pursuit, we must avoid getting sidetracked and venturing down roads that are not in line with God's plan for our lives. When that happens, we end up doing what we should not do and going where we should not go.
This is one of the underlying messages of the prodigal son. This story is nestled between the parable of lost sheep and a lost coin in Luke chapter 15, and there in verses 11-16, Jesus tells us about the missteps of a young man who made a wrong turn.
Luke 15:11 says, “There was a man who had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.’ So he divided his property between them. A few days later the younger son gathered all that he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout the country, and he began to be in need.
“So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating, and no one gave him anything.”
This illustration sheds light on what happens when we get off track in life and end up going down the wrong path. If you thought the consequences of missing a doctor’s appointment or a business meeting were bad, try getting spiritually sidetracked and finding yourself in a place you should not and do not want to be.
Have you ever made a decision that led you down a road you wish you hadn’t gone? There are several things that can seduce us into our own prodigal son story. We think we “have it all” and do not realize how quickly things can go bad. Like the story though, your Heavenly Father is always ready to take you back. But be wary, there are consequences for your decisions.
If we can avoid making these decisions in the first place and avoid getting sidetracked, we can reap the reward of staying on God’s path much sooner and without the negative consequences!
If we want to follow Christ with a divine pursuit, we must avoid getting sidetracked and venturing down roads that are not in line with God's plan for our lives. When that happens, we end up doing what we should not do and going where we should not go.
This is one of the underlying messages of the prodigal son. This story is nestled between the parable of lost sheep and a lost coin in Luke chapter 15, and there in verses 11-16, Jesus tells us about the missteps of a young man who made a wrong turn.
Luke 15:11 says, “There was a man who had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.’ So he divided his property between them. A few days later the younger son gathered all that he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout the country, and he began to be in need.
“So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating, and no one gave him anything.”
This illustration sheds light on what happens when we get off track in life and end up going down the wrong path. If you thought the consequences of missing a doctor’s appointment or a business meeting were bad, try getting spiritually sidetracked and finding yourself in a place you should not and do not want to be.
Have you ever made a decision that led you down a road you wish you hadn’t gone? There are several things that can seduce us into our own prodigal son story. We think we “have it all” and do not realize how quickly things can go bad. Like the story though, your Heavenly Father is always ready to take you back. But be wary, there are consequences for your decisions.
If we can avoid making these decisions in the first place and avoid getting sidetracked, we can reap the reward of staying on God’s path much sooner and without the negative consequences!
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