If you’ve been a Christian for very long, chances are good that you’re familiar with the parable of the prodigal son (if not, you can find it in Luke 15:11-32). The basic story, for those who don’t know it, is that a son goes to his father, asks for his inheritance, goes and blows it, and then comes home to his father, hoping to be a slave, but being welcomed back as a son.

It’s a beautiful story of redemption and a spectacular picture of the love of God. There’s nothing that we can do that is too heinous for us to return to God. He has a limitless amount of love for us.

But there’s another brother in the story. The older brother. The good brother. The brother who didn’t leave, didn’t cavort, didn’t reject.

We don’t think much about him. He seems kind of whiney. When his younger brother comes home and their father welcomes him with a great feast, the older brother stays outside and pouts. He folds his arms and refuses to be a part of the celebration. And when his father comes out to talk to him, he yells, saying that he’s never done anything wrong, he’s worked hard and he’s never even been allowed to have a party with his friends.

Yeah, that guy sounds like me. I don’t have a testimony that stops people in their tracks and makes them think, “Wow, God has really had to do a number on HER!” I’ve been a Christian for as long as I can remember. I sang in the church choir growing up, I was the youth representative for our region in our denomination, I did all of the “good kid” stuff. I was by no means perfect, but even in my most rebellious times, I wasn’t THAT bad. And I never turned my back on God.

One would think that’s a good thing. And really, it is. I’m really lucky to be able to say that I’ve been pretty tight with Jesus my whole life.

But sometimes it feels like God loves the people who have the “good” testimonies a little bit more. The story of a person who was born in the church, grew up in the church and is still in the church is just not one that has a whole lot of pizzazz. You don’t generally get invited to share your story to motivate people. That book isn’t flying off the shelf. It can be easy to feel neglected for doing good when there seems to be a more demonstrable outpouring of love for the prodigal child.

But I love what the father says to the older son. “You are always with me and everything I have is yours.”
It’s easy to think of that strictly in terms of the stuff, but I like to think that the father (and our Father) is referring also to that extravagant love. That love that gushes, that embraces, that celebrates. We have access to that.

All we have to do is show up.

Do you identify more with the prodigal son or the older brother? Do you ever question if God loves you as much as someone else?

Alise
My personal blog: BigMama247
Big Mama on Facebook
Find me on Twitter: @BigMama247



You can find Alise Wright at BigMama247.com, where she writes about faith, family, friendship and killer robots. She lives in WV with her husband and four children.