In the story of the prodigal son, we see a young man who leaves home to go into the far country. There he falls into a life of sin and excess. His funds from the inheritance run out but then something tragic happens, a famine. This famine means there isn’t enough for the people of that land much less this young outsider. They let him watch the pigs but won’t even let him eat their slop.
It’s only then that the boy realizes the foolishness of his choices and the need to go home. He thinks he will only be accepted as a hired man, not a son but the hunger has burned away his pride. He does not care anymore. Yet his father accepts him back, it even seems he has been watching the road longing for his return. A celebration ensues, rejoicing over the lost one that has come home.
Have we considered however what got him to come home?
If not for the famine the young man may never have had the epiphany that he needed to come back. Famines are terrible things and they don’t just affect one person. A whole country suffers. This young man felt a pain he never experienced. That pain bring him to his senses. A famine is by no means a good thing yet because of it a good thing happened
There are times in our world we wonder why bad things happen. Have we ever considered that God allows them as a catalyst for positive change? Our pride keeps us stuck in our bad ways. Unless something happens to force us to reconsider. The suffering we go through might be a wake-up call for us. Or it might also be something we go through to help someone else wake up.
A famine isn’t good but it might be something we should consider asking for.
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