THE UPPER ROOM 2ND APRIL 2024 DEVOTIONAL, TUESDAY MESSAGE
TOPIC: The Prodigal Son
TODAY’S READING
Luke 15:11-32
The younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. – Luke 15:13 (NIV)
Just like the younger son in Jesus’ parable, I squandered my life in wild living. Drugs and alcohol consumed me, and I became a shell of a man. Deep down I knew there had to be a better way.
One cloudy Saturday in early June 2013, I found myself sitting in front of a church in southern Delaware. I was waiting for the Narcotics Anonymous meeting to start, but I had arrived early and was the only one there. Not long after I arrived, a man pulled into the church parking lot and parked in a space reserved for the pastor. I told him my story. He listened attentively and invited me to the next day’s service when he would be preaching about the Prodigal Son. In my heart, I knew I was supposed to attend that service.
As I sat in the front row of the church the next morning, I felt the pastor was talking directly to me. Within an hour, I knew that I would never squander another day. That church welcomed me. Today I am blessed beyond compare. I am the Prodigal Son, and God has received me with love.
TODAY’S PRAYER
Dear God, forgive us for squandering our days. Help us to realize how precious life is. Amen.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Jesus will always welcome me home.
PRAYER FOCUS
Recovery groups
The Upper Room is a daily devotional magazine published in more than 30 languages and 100 countries around the world. The daily meditations are written by readers of the magazine and others interested in sharing their faith experiences through writing—both laity and clergy, published authors and new writers. The meditations are stories of real people working to live faithfully with the Bible as their touchstone. Every day, readers of The Upper Room around the world read the same story in many different languages and pray the same prayer together.