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NASB | John 13:35 "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | John 13:35 "By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you have love and unselfish concern for one another." |
Bible Question:
Does anyone have a Prodigal in their life. My wife and I found a book by Ruth Bell Graham, called PRODIGALS (AND THOSE WHO LOVE THEN). We have wept and felt helpless, and prayed for our Prodigal. We have felt isolated, and kept our Prodigal situation to our self. Mainly because of judgements, and fear. This book is a healing that I would like to help anyother family that has a Prodigal in the family. This is a book of hope when you feel all hope is gone. I hope this helps someone else out there in the forum. I know we are not alone. justme |
Bible Answer: Greetings Justme! Thanks for the recommendation my friend. I will have to get a copy for myself. Allow me to encourage everyone to keep on praying, and to keep on loving your prodigals! It may take many years, but God is working on them. I know from experience with our daughter. She ran away with a 35 year old man when she was 14. She was gone for 3 or 4 months and we had no clue if she was alive or dead. Over those months, we tracked her across several states - with very little help from most police agencies. In fact, several of them got mad at me because I was the one finding all of the clues and trails, not them. We finally got her home, and Indiana would not prosecute this man, even though he had her working in strip clubs at 14 years of age. The FBI and Justice Department would not do anything either. Fortunately, we had found an excellent detective in MI, who went after this man with everything he had. The guy got seven years in prison. Even though our daughter was home, she wasn't! She remained on the 'streets' for the next 4 years, only coming 'home' when she was at rock bottom and needing a meal. My wife and I prayed long and hard about how to respond to her. We finally decided that we would in no way condone what she was doing, but let her know that she was loved and always welcome at our house. Many of you know that recently, our daughter went down to the altar at our church and was brought back to Christ. She has a long way to go, but she is making progress. She is home most of the time now. She attends church with us now. She has been drug free for about 3 or 4 months now. The only drawbacks are that she is expecting her second child in March (we already have guardianship of her first baby) and she can't seem to break the ties with her current 30 plus year old boyfriend (though she is showing signs of doing just that recently). I know of what you speak my friend. One goes through anger, denial, doubt, fear, and guilt. The 'what if's' can torment you. But, keep the faith. We serve a God who loves our prodigal even more than we do! He will move heaven and earth to reach them. Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |