So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. Luke 15:20
One of the hardest things about loving someone is discovering that you cannot make their choices for them.
Rob and Ellie’s son had finished a month-long treatment program for substance abuse when he used drugs again and had to be rushed to the hospital. As they sat with him in the psychiatric unit, they asked for prayer. “We don’t know what to do,” they confessed.
Maybe someone you love is making choices that are hurting them. You’ve talked, warned and helped. Maybe you’ve cleaned up some of the mess. And still, they keep choosing the same road.
Jesus told a story about a father who knew this pain. The younger son demanded his inheritance, left home and wasted it on reckless living. But the father didn’t chase him or prevent him from wasting the money. When his son became hungry and desperate, the father didn’t rescue him from the consequences. He loved him and let him go.
When the son finally turned toward home, his father saw him while he was still a long way off and scripture says, “Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him” (Luke 15:20).
The father kept loving him. But love didn’t give him control over his son’s choices. Sometimes love means helping. Sometimes it means speaking a difficult truth or setting a boundary. And sometimes it means allowing someone to experience consequences you wish you could spare them.
You can love even when you can’t rescue. You can leave room for God to work in places you cannot reach. If you’re carrying responsibility for someone’s choices today, ask God what love requires of you—and what it doesn’t.
The father lovingly welcomed his son home. But his son had to decide to come home.
