Goodies reserved!
Luke 15:22 But the father said to his servants, 'Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet."
The father did not just give him a robe but notice, the prodigal son who ran away and plundered his money was given the ‘best robe!’ That’s the colossal love of God! The father just knew what to give his son! Since he was in tattered clothes, the father just did not give him a pair of clothes but the best was given to make the son happy and truly welcome, the father goes on to put a ring and make him part of the family and comfortable, the last one is ace. Shoes on his feet! This shows the ‘mother’s heart’ of God! The father knew the son had slogged in the pig’s sty, walked long distances and was drained – shoes were given to warm his feet.
God just knows what to give you! I am speaking to someone out there! Are you tired, frazzled, worn out, disappointed and frustrated? Hang on, this message is for you!
When my sister had come down from abroad after many years, she took me out and gave me a treat of ‘foot massage’; I’m sure it sounds weird treat, but she knew I had no time for all this and she gave me this ‘halt’ from a hectic and frenzied schedule in my ministry. We went around visiting good joints and simply enjoying; she opened the huge suitcases that she painfully carried all the way across the sea. Ah! The contents in the suitcases reflected the love, care and affection that was stored in her; there were sweaters for me, shawls, soft woolen bed sheets, calcium tablets, many other vitamin tablets, nourishing cream and much more! Every stuff carried a label of nutrition! Every other frivolous stuff was taboo inside that ‘love box!’ I thought of the painful process of packing, weighing, arranging and carrying all the way…………
I repeat again, God knows what you need! Not what you want! He supplies your need! Are you listening? If God had intervened earlier and given the package of best robe, ring and the shoes to the prodigal son, he would not have appreciated the value of it as he did when he was a total wreck. We might scream and yell ‘I’ve come to a dead end in my life or a hopeless situation’, let me tell you something, He knows it all. For several years, after I return from my ministry trip from villages, I would be down with severe allergy over my whole body. The healing process would take at least a week; my ministry travelling would include stay in mosquito infested villages, water and many, many other stuff. During a particular bus travel, the bus was jam-packed and I was not able to release my legs though the mosquitos were biting unbearably. I did wonder ‘why Lord?’ and ‘How long Lord?’ All the years of travelling, suffering, pain, meeting under-privileged kids in several villages were experiences that coalesced to help me run our School and Home for the poor kids in Hyderabad.
Our suffering has a purpose!
