Real Prosperity
by Marilyn Conrad

Someone has said that real prosperity is simply being in control… whether it be emotionally, spiritually or financially.

Please read Luke 15:11-32. The father in this parable was a prosperous man. He was in control of his own emotions and he was in control spiritually.

James 3:16 says that where there is envy and strife there is confusion and every evil work. The father stayed out of strife with the son and agreed to give him his inheritance. He did not put demands on the son or manipulate him. He could have said, "When you bring home all A’s I’ll give you your inheritance, or when you graduate from college or when you’re twenty one." In verse 12 we read that the father gave the son what was his.

Verse 13 says the son went to a distant land and there wasted all his money. Many mates seem to follow this pattern also and soon find themselves in great financial difficulty.

WON’T BE ALONE

In verse 15 the son joined himself to a citizen of that country. Our mates often join themselves to another in non-covenant marriages or continue to have affairs. They can not bear to be alone and therefore must always have someone with them.

Verse 17 lets us know that home should always be remembered as a place to which they could return - a place of love and forgiveness. That’s why it is so important to stay out of strife. One day our mates, like this son, will finally come to their senses. Our prayers and our spiritual warfare are pulling down strongholds over them and they will once again see clearly!

Job 33:14-18 is a good scripture to pray over our mates at night when they are asleep and God can minister to their spirits.

For God speaks again and again, in dreams, in visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on men as they lie on their beds. He opens their ears in times like that, and gives them wisdom and instruction, causing them to change their minds, and keeping them from pride and warning them of the penalties of sin, and keeping them from falling into some trap." Living Bible

MAN OF FAITH

I believe this father was a man of faith. He knew his son would return home. He had the ring, the shoes and the robe ready for his return. For many this robe will be a robe of righteousness. Our loved ones will receive Jesus as Lord and Savior of their lives. Because he was a man of faith, the father was watching for him and saw him coming while he was a great distance away. He had the fatted calf ready for a celebration.

The father had complete forgiveness and acceptance for his son; however, the older brother did not. He was self-righteous and unforgiving. As the first-born son he received a double portion of the inheritance so he really had no complaint. But he had an ungrateful heart.

Likewise, we must guard our spirits and not become envious when other marriages are healed before ours. We must rejoice as though it were our very own.

Are we, like this father, prosperous? Are we in control of situations as they arise? If so, our mates can remember us as loving and forgiving mates and desire to return home. If not, and there was strife and unforgiveness, then repentance and cleansing are necessary. (1 John 1:9) Ask for forgiveness from your mate also. If it is not possible to talk with them, write them a letter. Tell them you are sorry and that God is doing a work in your life. Remember, faith works by love and love never fails.

The Other Prodigal
from the Houston Covenant Keepers Group

One of the most amazing things we have discovered in talking with others standing for their marriages is that one of the first scriptures that the Lord gave us is the prodigal son story in Luke 15:11-32. Of course it was easy for us to see the spouse that left us as the "prodigal."

The Texas paraphrase of Luke 15:22-32 goes like this: The older dude comes ridin’ up to the ranch house and hears a square dance in progress and smells barbeque in the air. He asks one of the hands, "What’s with the shindig?" "Bubba’s come home," replies the hand. The older dude was ticked! The ole man comes out and says, "Come on in boy, Bubba’s back." The dude replies, "Ain’t doin’ nothin’ with the low life scum. I’ve been punchin’ cows all these years and ya ain’t done nothin’ fer me. Bubba’s spent all that money in every saloon and -----house west of the Pecos and you put on a shindig fer em?" The old man says, "Dude, the whole spread is yours, it’s jest right and fittin’ to welcome Bubba home."

The Bible does not say anything about whether or not the older son went in and welcomed his brother. However, both sons were wrong. Both sons had sin in their hearts. Both needed to repent. However, we so often identify the prodigal son as the one who was outwardly sinful. The "good" son that stayed home is overlooked as not being sinful at all. He just had an attitude problem. Many covenant keepers identify with the father as they are waiting for their prodigal to come home. However, the father represents God and the sons represent the two types of spouses found in most troubled marriages.

In listening to fellow covenant keepers at various meetings and conventions, we hear a lot of negative comments about the prodigal. We have heard the chronically obese criticize the alcoholic spouse. The one who has soulical ties to some "friend" blasts the spouse in adultery. One accuses the other of pornography, yet overlooks trash TV and dirty novels. One points out an unsaved spouse while possessed with a critical, religious spirit. One is deeply hurt by the "sex crazed" spouse and they overlook their withholding of affection. Others complain of living under a dictator while they were manipulation and control freaks. One is blamed for lack of communication while the other is involved in endless babble. And of course they don’t "perform" like so-and-so but you would never be guilty of comparison. The list is endless.

The Bible has something to say in Matt 7:2 about "Judge not lest you be judged…" Texas paraphrase, "What ya see wrong with yer partner is the same thang wrong with you." If you want to find out what the private problems and sins are with a covenant keeper, just listen to them criticize and complain about the prodigal. "Oh, I’m not an alcoholic," says one who is double their wedding weight. Check out the reciprocals and see if they apply to you.

As we mentioned earlier, the scripture does not record the response to the father’s invitation. In Romans 10:14, "Why do you judge Bubba? Why do you look down your nose at Bubba? We will all face the music in front of Jesus!" When Bubba was starving west of the Pecos and he came to himself, he judged himself and repented. The brother judged Bubba, not himself, and had no repentance or forgiveness. Many covenant keepers spend so much time talking about Bubba, criticizing Bubba, exalting themselves above Bubba, that they never take the time to deal with their own faults. It feels better for the flesh to compare ourselves to Bubba, rather than to the standards set by God.

Yes, there are two prodigals in the story. Most people see only the one that is obvious. And sad to say, most are too proud to admit that we are the proud, self-righteous, self-centered, selfish prodigal. Many will hide behind the facade of, "I’m an innocent victim." It is time for the prodigal at home to come to himself and repent. Perhaps our stand for our marriage will be shortened when the prodigal at home has repented to the Father. Many testimonies of successful stands seem to have a common thread of, "I got before God and asked Him to correct me, to show me where I was wrong and repented of sin." Perhaps the rest of us need to take that advice to heart.

"Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye." Matt 7:5