"Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country, and there squandered his wealth in wild living." Luke 16:13
Father
I’ve prayed a thousand prayers
And I’ll pray a thousand more.
Head bowed
Life bowed
Dearest LORD, once again I implore
Save him
Break him
Do what it takes
Don’t forsake him
Work in him
Work despite him
You know what is at stake
Hear my heart—my desperate plea
Rescue him
Father God
Forever unfailing and trustworthy.
Son
So long, farewell
Adíos, I’m gone
I’m free from your rigidity
Free from your religiosity
Free from your authority.
I’m hitting the road
Seeing the sights
Going to know all there is to know
I’m going to do it all
Be it all
Nothing will stop me.
I’m going to live life
On my terms
My desires—my pleasures
Whatever I want
I’ll forget all about you
Do this without you
Except for this one thing
I’ll spend your money
‘Cuz the money is good.
Father
You’re traveling on a road
That I can never take
I knew this day was coming
And how I would break
These choices and decisions
That will only end in heartache
They’ve blinded you to reality
And all that is at stake.
But if you could see
What I see
If you could look with the eyes of faith
And just believe
Then you would know
What I know
And find the love that won’t let you go
If you could see what I see.
I wish I could perceive
How far you will go
How long will you run, my son,
From the lover of your soul?
You’re chasing after things
That will never satisfy
You’ve traded the truth
For oh so many lies.
But if you could see
What I see
If you could look with the eyes of faith
And just believe
Then you would know
What I know
And find the love that won’t let you go
If you could see what I see.
He loves you
Even more than I do
His grace and mercy
Are reaching out to you
Take hold of
The salvation He’s proffering
And the forgiveness He’s offering.
But if you could see
What I see
If you could look with the eyes of faith
And just believe
Then you would know
What I know
And find the love that won’t let you go
If you could see what I see.
Son
I’ve got a babe on one arm
And a bae on the other
All these guys around me
Call me their brother
Let’s keep this party going
Keep the booze a’flowing
Every moment the pleasure is growing
No stopping—no slowing
This is what I’ve been looking for.
If the old man had only loosened up
Eased off
Cut me some slack
Maybe he would have seen
Life can be fun
But he‘s nothing but a curmudgeon
Now’s the time to live it up
No stopping—no slowing
This is what I’m living for.
Father
The world wants its answers
To why this is happening
What wrongs did I commit?
What secret sin am I harboring?
What could I have done differently?
How was I enabling?
Was I tough--
Lovingly tender--
Strict—
And boundary-setting?
How did I fail
For him to make the choices he’s made?
It’s all my fault--
Condemn me--
Place the blame.
The questions and the piteous looks
Isolate and segregate
Leaving me alone in the struggle
Undone by its weight.
Son
One day you’ve got it
The next day it’s gone
One day there’s a crowd
Cheering you on
Then, in a flash,
They’ve all withdrawn
As long as I had the dough
They hung on my arm
Stoked my ego
But now that I have nothing
Not a penny to my name
Everything I cherished
Has ignited and perished
In the flames.
Older Brother
It’s beyond my comprehension
I cannot begin to apprehend
After all he’s been put through
After all that’s been done
How can he still pray for
Hope for
Yearn for
The return of this son?
What manner of love
Waits with expectation
When all seems lost
Holds out—holds on?
Father
Remember those sunny days
When we worked side by side
You and I
We sweated and toiled
With laughter unspoiled
By anything
We walked and talked
Those times brought
More joy than I would have ever thought
But the clouds rolled in
And the ensuing storms blew you away.
I stare out my window
I watch and wonder
Will those sunny days come again?
Son
A job is a job is a job
When you need to pay the rent
When the bills are overdue
And the money’s overspent.
You do what you’ve got to do
Though it pains me to the core.
The cash is gone
My “friends” are gone
The food is gone
Nothing is as it was before.
I’ll settle
Make do
For the interim
It’s a stop gap
A shirt-lived measure
For sure
I’ll climb back up in no time
Rise again
Make them all eat my dust
But for now
A job is a job is a job.
Father
Break down
Break down all the idols
In his life
Tear down
Tear down the walls
He’s built to hide
From You
Rip down
Rip down his selfish pride
The lies deep inside
Break down.
Break him
Break him from the things
That never satisfy
Show him
Show him the relentlessness
Of Your grace
Forgive him
Forgive him for his rebelliousness
And selfish pride
Break him.
Break through
O Holy Spirit come
Rescue him
Cleanse him
Of all his sin
Restore him
Renew from within
Hear this
My anxious entreaty
And break through.
Son
Nauseating and revolting
Sickening and repugnant
That’s not just the smell of the swine
But the way my life has went.
I’m starving
While these animals are well fed
What’s wrong with me?
What was going through my head?
My father’s servants are better off
I’ll return to him and beg
For forgiveness I don’t deserve
Pardon I could never earn.