I greet you in Jesus’ precious name! It is Thursday morning, the 14th of August, 2025, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.

We go to the Gospel of Luke 15:31:

“And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours.” 

That was the response of the father when the prodigal son had come home after wasting all his money, and his father was so pleased to see him come back that he killed the fatted ox, and he had a party for his young son. The older son had been working all day in the fields. He came home and saw what his father had done for his brother and he was plain jealous. Another word for jealousy is resentment, bitterness, holding a grudge. Now I can hear somebody saying, “But I would be the same as the older son! I mean that young boy demanded his inheritance. He went and blew it on wine, women and song, lost everything, cost his dad and his older brother a lot more blood, sweat and tears, then he comes home and his dad treats him like a prince.” 

We need to be so careful that we do not lose our focus. His dad said, ”Son, I have given you everything I’ve got, you are going to inherit this farm. Why are you so upset?” We need to be so careful that we don’t forget what God has given to us. Like you get a man who has been in the far country, he’s been a reveller, a drinker, a fighter, a thief, then he comes to Christ and his sins are forgiven. They’ve been washed away. He is a brand new man in Christ.

” …if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away…” 
2 Corinthians 5:17

Now, when you see that, and you’ve been serving the Lord for maybe 20 - 30 years, and this new boy on the block, he seems to be getting all the accolades, all the privileges and everybody’s excited about him, but I want to say to you that the Lord loves you. He loves your faithfulness, He loves your hard work, He loves the fact that you have not dropped the ball, you have never let the Lord down, and there is a great reward waiting for you and me when we get to heaven. Remember, this is not the end of the road. This is only the beginning of the road! 

So have mercy on the person who has made a big mistake, but who has come home. Give them grace, give them love, let them get excited. Don’t correct them all the time because they are so full of joy, their sins have been forgiven. Just remember that there is a great reward waiting in heaven for your obedience, your faithfulness, not falling by the way, but keeping on for the Lord.

Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day,
Goodbye