In the Mind of a Fish

Once there was a man with two sons. This was a long time ago, so there won't be very many familiar things in it like cars and cell phones. In any case, the youngest son decided he wasn't getting the things out of life that he wanted, so he asked his father for his inheritance (see how long ago it was?).

His father gave him his inheritance and little Johnnie thanked him gleefully and headed out into the world to see what he could see. After some time, he found that gambling and partying was very expensive and that it had severely damaged his inheritance. In fact, he had run so low on money; he couldn't even afford to buy a McDonald's cheese burger (if there had been any around that is).

Since he was getting hungry and really didn't have a place to sleep either, he hired himself on to take care of farmer Don's pigs. But, as you can imagine, pig feeding doesn't pay much and he still found that he wasn't able to purchase enough food to keep his stomach from aching because it was so empty.

One day, he threw the slop out to the pigs and noticed something that most people don't notice when they are feeding pigs. He noticed that the slop he was giving the pigs looked like a pretty good meal. Of course, pig slop can be made up of food that would have otherwise been thrown out into the garden or the burn pile. But, it still looked good to him.

When that happened, he remembered how well his father's servants ate when he was at home. Wow! What a revelation. The servants eat better than the pigs and the pigs eat better than he does. So, little Johnnie set off for home to negotiate a deal with Dad. He decided he could be a servant in his father's house. He had completely forgotten how much he disliked living there when he was a son. But, the servant idea was better than eating pig slop. As he reasoned these things, he approached his home.

What do you suppose happened then? While he was a long ways away (not driving or in a bus), his father looked out and saw the form of his son who had left so long ago. He dropped all that he was doing and ran out to meet his son and welcome him back home. Johnnie said, "Dad, I can be a servant in your house. I know how well they eat." But, his father would not hear of it. Instead, he insisted that a robe be thrown over him and the family ring put on his finger and a great big party be thrown for his son. He said, "My son who was dead has come back to life again."

Well, there's more of the story to tell. His brother, Jake was none too pleased with this situation. He had not wasted his father's money. He had stayed at home and done all the things he thought would set him in place in his father's mind and house. But, now, that troublemaker is back and he gets a party. But, that's another story.

It is amazing that God just looks for the slightest excuse to accept us and take us back to him. The father didn't put Johnnie on trial to determine if all the requirements for returning home had been met. He didn't ask him what happened to the money. He didn't ask him if he was sorry. He just saw Johnnie heading in the direction of home and ran to bring him the rest of the way.

Wow! What does it take to get acceptance from God? Just take a turn. He's watching to see which way you are heading so he can run and help you come back.

This variation of an old familiar story was stolen from "The Musings of Matthew Smith".