I am Dave

This morning at church we were singing a hymn and as I was singing I started to really think about the words. The part that got me was:
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood.

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
For some reason a picture popped into my head. It was a picture of someone I have only met once. I will call him Dave. Dave's parents died a few years ago and he has been adopted by other members of his family I believe. I can't remember his whole story, but I am pretty sure that Dave did not have a great family life and now that his parents are dead my understanding is he is living rather recklessly and not real appreciative of what these family members have done and continue to do for him daily even.

Any way, when I saw the picture of him the other day my first thought was, "What an ungrateful fool." Then I thought about how I am better than Dave. I am more responsible, don't drink as much, work harder, etc. For just a moment I may have been glad that Dave existed just so I could feel better about myself. Then today when I was singing God smacked me right in the face with the words to the song I was singing to him!

I realized that I am no different than Dave. I have been adopted by God through his son Jesus and far too often I am just like the prodigal son that Jesus told about in Luke 15. I may not do it in loud, public ways like Dave or the son in the story, but often I tell God in no uncertain terms that I want my inheritance and I don't really want a relationship with him and march off to do things my way.

My pastor put a little piece of paper on our chairs at church this morning and on it was written, "I am thankful for..." He said to really think about it and maybe even put it away for a while and came back to it later. Well here I am at 9:44 and I know what I am thankful for. I am very thankful for my heavenly father who waits and watches for me, who calls for me and when he sees me coming back home he runs to me with open arms, hugs me and welcomes me back home. That is what I am thankful for. Blessings...