Friday, February 6, 2009

Are you hungry...yet?

Luke 15:16-17 (NLT)
The young man became so
hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one
gave him anything. 17 “When he finally came to his senses, he said to
himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I
am dying of hunger!

A couple of weeks ago my son and I met for coffee. I always have the hope that one day, when we visit one another I will hear him say “Mom, I’m sick of this life, I’m ready to let Jesus take over.” But as I sat across from him with the scent of fresh brewed coffee in the air, our conversation was the same…life is unfair.

By the time I left I was heartbroken, once again. I must admit since my last post about this situation, my whining seem to be getting louder. My heart is always questioning God’s timing with…How much longer before he will see his need for You?” After a few days, God lead me to read about the prodigal son, now I’ve read this many times before but this time I saw the word *senses*. Then this morning He showed me six other words *but no one gave him anything.*
I thought,could there have been people watching as this young man was eyeing the food that was given to the pigs. They must have known he was hungry,yet no one gave him anything. It was only then he remembered...home.

Now as far as being the mom who is always bailing her son out, that I’m not but I use to be. Still its very hard when you see your child struggle, no matter what the age, you just want to do whatever you can to make the pain go away. There are times I feel so guilty and unloving when I hear of his troubles and he knows I can help. But God has showed me, that right now I need to give him nothing that will please the flesh in order for him to come to his senses.

Sounds cruel, doesn’t it?
I've come to the understanding that Ryan needs to be like the prodigal son,who must become so full of himself that in time he will feel completely empty. Until then, Ryan’s senses, which were made to hear, see, taste and touch God’s presence, will be dead. I know its not going to be easy, but nothing is when God has asked you to step out of the way and let Him take over. I believe when the prodigal son left his father's home,the father's heart was broken and there was nothing the father could do but pray.

My heart is broken and I will continue to pray for my son. If this is something your dealing with, I would love to join with you in pray every week for your prodigal child (ren). There is nothing more powerful then a praying parent to bring down the strongholds of the enemy!


Father God,
I pray that You will continue to
protect Ryan until the day he surrenders to You.
May his ears listen for the
whisper of Your voice calling his name.
May his eyes get a glimpse of Your
glory.
May his mouth taste Your sweet promises of a life, that he once tasted
as a child.
May he reach out and touch the tip of You garment for his complete
healing.
And help me to patiently wait for the day of his homecoming.
Amen!

Tammy

16 comments:

JMBMOMMY said...

Wow, this post really hit close with me -- it is my brother that is so lost but I have watched my mom "take care of him" for 35 years and has really enabled him. But I will be the 1st to admit I have no clue how it feels yet and I can only imagine it is sooo hard to not give to your child. May the Lord give you strength to love tough when called to do so. Blessings.

Beth in NC said...

God bless you Tammy. I pray God gives you strength to be strong in your convictions. My friend and I were JUST talking about this same situation this morning and she came to the conclusion that she was being an enabler too.

Praying for your son to come to Him.

Love,
Beth

Laura said...

Oh, Tammy, I'm praying for Ryan along side you. You are being a good mother for giving this to Him. He hears your prayers, friend.

Bless your heart,
Laura

Sherri Watt said...

Tammy,

I have a son that is 24 and only recently finally gave his life to Christ. I still however, have 3 step-sons that I love like my own that have not. I pray with you my friend for the prodical children. I have recently begun to fast for them also. You are right, they must come to their senses.

God Bless!

Karen said...

Wonderful post! I can totally relate to your situation as I have a prodigal son of my own. Having been an "enabler" and then totally stopping was one of the hardest things I have ever done. People that have not gone through that with an adult child just don't understand sometimes. God has moved in so many ways in my prodigal's life recently and he has started his U-turn back home because he is getting hungry in his soul. Praise the Lord! We must continue to pray and NEVER give up...

LisaShaw said...

Sweet Tammy,

I've been there for a few years at one point. We're now beginning to see a change with our adult daughter but it was when i began to step back, hold on with my heart, love and prayers but in all other ways let go and let GOD.

Hard? Absolutely! Necessary? Absolutely! It is then they see the need for the LORD.

I am praying for your son as I pray for our daughter and others who need to truly know the LORD on a more deeper level.

I love you.

Edie said...

I have been there time and time again. I have learned to step aside and let God deal with it too. God bless you Tammy. He will work on your son and not give up.

elaine @ peace for the journey said...

I have known the walk of a prodigal child. I've been that child, and it wasn't until I came to the end of myself,until I'd had my fill of pods and swine filling, that I noticed my need.

I came running home, and the depths to which I now know and love my Savior is a direct link to his open arms of welcoming love.

Forgiven much. Love much.

Keep the faith and keep speaking it to your son. I don't know if you were able to watch my video on my blogaversary, but it speaks to my father's (both God and my biological father) welcoming home of me.

I will pray for your son today.

peace~elaine

Carol said...

Tammy my friend. I will pray for your Ryan. Although I do not have a prodigal son, I know the difficulties of having someone you love lost. Including my husband, until 2 years ago.

Stand strong, and remember we cannot battle this with weapons of the flesh but of with spiritual weapons.

Love you,
Carol

Jody said...

I'm like the father(mother) watching on the horizon praying for my son to come home, confident that God is going to bring him safely into His Kingdom.Until then I pray.

Anonymous said...

Tammy
You have a tough choice but its going to be for the best. Keep praying...that is the best thing you could be doing for him right now...

Debra Kaye said...

Tammy,

I am there with you with my daughter. I enabled for years and now stand firmly in God's promises too.

I will be praying for Ryan...if you would remember my Krystle I would be most appreciative.

Blessings to you!

Anonymous said...

Tammy,
My husband and son are at a ballgame tonight so I have the house to myself! I began surfing some blogs and ran into yours. I am sure God let me to it! Like you, I have a prodigal daughter. In high school, she was so involved in F.C.A. she put God 1st, loved going on mission trips and was a great kid! After going away to college, she began to desire things that were not pleasing to God. After a year and half, she moved back home and transferred colleges. We love having her back home, but she continues to desire things of the world. Please pray for her, and I will pray for your son, that he would desire to know God, that God will whisper to him, and he will hear him.
Sorry to ramble. I am in the process of creating a blog, called "By His Grace". You can email me at natalie.adkins@sjsd.k12.mo.us

Carolyn said...

Tammy, I am praying for Ryan. Your post is so thoughtful and I love the prayer you wrote for Ryan. I want to share a praise from one of our ladies in our prayer group that may encourage you. After praying all night for her daughter, she picked up her baby picture asking God where was that child. At that point she totally surrended all control and trust to Him to bring her daughter back to Him. Less than an hour later, her daughter called from the hospital with news that she had been in a very serious accident, but was okay. Long story short, realizing God had protected her, the daughter gave her heart back to Him, is in the process of changing her life style and went back to church last Sunday. We all had been praying for her for weeks, but when her mom stepped aside, God worked a miracle. It is all for His glory. Be encouraged.
Love and prayers, Carolyn

Lori Laws said...

Hi Tammy,
I think you may be interested in writing about life (and your abortion story). Go to TheCypressTimes.com and write to the Editor and Publisher-his name is John Winder. I told him that I have a blogger friend who may be interested, but I didn't mention your name. If interested, tell him you are a friend of mine:)

Love ya!

Pam said...

Hey Tammy, yes, I read that article a couple of times! I love what you said about him becoming so full of himself that he will be empty. I understand that, and I understand enabling. It is harder said than done though, especially when it seems to go on and on. Yes, I will join you in prayer for Ryan, and lift him up! Bless you girl!!