Any time we decide to walk away from God, we are telling Him, “I want to do what I want to do.” It’s an attitude that is not uncommon in young people, but it is an attitude that can kill you. This is a sinful attitude; you’re saying that you don’t want anyone, including God, to tell you what to do. You are essentially declaring that you know better than God.

The prodigal son was on the road to destruction. He thought he was all set because he had all this money. I’m sure the whole situation had left the father crushed and broken. He knew his son would have to learn the hard way.

From the time he asked his dad for the inheritance, he was in want; he just didn’t realize it until he hit rock bottom. He spent all he had. It wasn’t until he had no money left and the famine hit that he realized he was in want.

He sold himself as a servant and was sent out to feed swine. That would have been the lowest of lows: first to sell himself into servanthood, but then to have to feed pigs. He was so hungry that he thought it would have been a good thing to eat what the pigs were eating, but they wouldn’t let him eat it. He made such little money that the food he could have bought was worse than what the pigs were eating.

We’re going to have these moments when we rebel, but God is compassionate. He wants you back, but you first must swallow that pride. It is unbelievable how far down that road you can go as a child of God. You think that you will enjoy doing what you want to do, but when you get down that path, you find out that it is not as fun as you thought it would be. You end up realizing that your life was amazing, and you just didn’t realize it.

The only thing harder to swallow than husks is pride. If you find yourself in the same situation as the prodigal son, don’t wait; hurry and get back to the Father.