Mess

Mess. Last night my wife made chocolate brownies and iced them with some homemade chocolate icing. I have to say they are one of my favorite deserts. My little guy likes them pretty well too. While we were all doing something, my little guy decided he was going to help himself to the brownies but just focus on the icing part. When I caught him in the kitchen, his face, his hands and his pajama shirt was absolutely covered in chocolate icing. Down the entire length of the brownies were his finger marks where he ran his fingers to get the icing off. He was a mess.

After he got a little of the “what-for” for being disobedient for getting into the brownies he was told to stay out of, we cleaned him up from the chocolate explosion all over his face, hands and clothes. He was back to where he was before he started; the brownies: not so much. It made me think of the story of the prodigal son found in Luke 15. A young man that found himself and his life in a total mess. The Bible says that he reached a point where he finally “came to himself”. He realized how bad it had become and he needed to turn back to where he once was.

I find the most interesting part of that story is that he did not say, “I need to find a job, get myself back on my feet and cleaned up, and then I’ll go back to my father.”  Instead, he said, “I’m a mess, my father is my only way out and I’m going back just as I am: smelling like pig slop, dirty and with nothing to offer.”  I hear so many people say that as soon as they get their life straightened out they’ll come back to church or accept Christ. Christ wants you as the mess you are. “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." - Matthew 11:28-30.

Just like the father of the prodigal son who didn’t care that his some was filthy and smelled like pigs, he took his son back just as he was. God doesn’t want you to clean yourself up before coming to Him, He just wants you to “come to yourself” and turn back to Him. He will clean you up just like the prodigal’s father did when he returned.

Have a great day and God bless.