Come Get Your Son, Fred! The Prodigal Son

By: C.N.

Calling all parents! Calling all parents! For those of you who have children (especially those of you who have more than one child), you all know that children are different. Some children are just as sweet and obedient; they listen, they do their homework and chores without any problems, and they are just little angels. HOWEVER (and I know that all of you parents will back me up on this), some of these kids are hardheaded, ungrateful, and they think that they run something, when they don’t pay a bill or have a pot to pee in-woosah, woosah. Peaceful meadows, peaceful meadows. These are the children that love to rebel, often get themselves in trouble, yet look for you to bail them out of their little predicaments. We love our children, and we do our best to raise and take care of them, but they sometimes don’t realize how good their lives are (or the sacrifices that Mom and Dad make to give them the best lives possible), and they choose to run away from home and figure life out on their own. Such actions may work sometimes, but more often than not, things fail miserably (we’re talking EPIC fails), and little Sara and Sammy come waddling back home. We are all God’s children, and he loved us so much that he sent his darling son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins so that we would not perish, but have everlasting life (paraphrasing John 3:16 (KJV)). God loves us despite our flaws, our failures, and our bad attitudes. When we sin (mess up and do bad things) and run away from home, Jesus is always waiting with open arms to take us back (sure, you just crashed my new car into a light pole, and that will be coming out of your allowance, but come here, baby!). All that we need to do is ask God to please forgive us of our sins, help us to stop sinning, believe that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior, ask him to come into our lives, and follow him forever. Just as Jesus loves us unconditionally (no matter what) and will allow us to come back home when we mess up, we are to love our children (and parents, for that matter) unconditionally and allow them to come back home, even when they mess up. This brings us to the Parable of the Prodigal Son in the Bible.

In the 15th Chapter of Luke,  we see a man with two sons, and the man has promised to give both of his sons a portion of his estate (they’re getting dolla, dolla bills, y’all!). The older son was a patient young lad, working hard and waiting for his inheritance. The younger son, however, wanted his inheritance NOW (I don’t want to wait until tomorrow, Daddy! I want it now! I want it now!); he had a rocket up his behind, and wanted to go to the moon this instant (two, one, blast off! Ooh, that tickles. Haha). Daddy dearest, loving his younger son, gave him his inheritance. You would have thought that the younger son was trying to beat Usain Bolt in the Olympics; that boy ran away from home so quickly! The younger son wanted to be free, he wanted to party, and he wanted to live la vida loca (get out of my head, Ricky Martin!)! He didn’t need Pops, or so he thought. The younger son lived wild and free, spent all of his money, and went from being richer than Velveeta cheese to being so broke, he couldn’t pay attention or buy a vowel on Wheel of Fortune (that’s a shame. Haha). The younger son was so broke that he took a job feeding pigs (which was considered a “dirty job” during those times), and, get this, he actually wanted to eat the pigs’ food (dang, Bro, you want a sandwich?). The younger son soon realizes that he loves his family, has made a terrible mistake, and he returns home and asks for his father’s forgiveness and mercy. You would think that the father would be upset that his ungrateful son ran away with his money and blew it all, but that wasn’t the case. Luke 15 :20-24 (KJV) reads as follows:

Luke 15: 20-24 (KJV): And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.

Ladies and gentlemen, not only was the father NOT upset with his son (his son didn’t even think that he deserved to be his son anymore, but a mere servant), but when the father saw his son (Daddy had been waiting for him to come home), he ran to him, kissed him, put him in the best clothing, fed him, and threw him a party (celebrate good times, come on!)! That’s true love. When the older son came home from work (with corns on his feet the size of Jamaica) and saw that his father had thrown a party for his younger brother, he became angry (and wanted to give his little bro more than just a swirlie). The father explained to his older son that he loved him, would always be with him, and everything that the father had, his son would also have (no Jerry Springer-type drama over here!). That was beautiful, man! The father and his sons are one big, happy family! I wonder how this story would have played out in modern times? My fiery fingers are ready to work! Showtime! NOTE: I will be utilizing modern day language, technology and ways of living in this story, as we’re picturing this happening today.

Come Get Your Son, Fred! The Prodigal Son

By: C.N.

Biblical Reference: Luke 15: 11-32 (KJV)

*A man lives with his two sons, has promised both of them an inheritance, and the younger son is anxious to receive his inheritance now*

Younger Son: Hey, Pops? Can I talk to you for a second?

Father: Sure, Son. What’s on your mind?

Younger Son: Pops, I’m ready to be on my own. I’m 18 years old and just graduated from high school; I’m a man now (even though you don’t have a job, any money, any credit, and you’re sleeping on Daddy’s sofa). I know that you’ve promised Bro and I some money, but I want my money now. It’s time for me to get my own spot and do my own thing. There’s a party in the Hills this weekend, Keyshia is going to be there (oooh weeeee!!!), and it’s about to be LIT! I can’t miss it. Can I have my money now?

Father: Praise the Lord! You’re getting out! I mean…sure, Son. I understand that you’re a man now and want to find your own way. I’ll always be here for you. Here’s a check for $50,000. Please don’t spend it all in one place. You need an apartment, a car, insurance, food, clothes, and all of your basic necessities. You need to follow up on these job interviews; being free isn’t free at all.

*Daddy gives Sonny his inheritance, and the younger son instantly loses his mind. His brain just fell into Momma’s flower pot, and he begins acting like he doesn’t have any home training*

Younger Son: Sweettttttt! Thanks, Pops! I’m out. I’ll catch you and Bro later (sooner than you think, Sunshine).

*The younger son blows his money quicker than babies blow spit bubbles, and he finds himself in need of a job at the Doggy Daycare*

Receptionist (with a voice that sounds like she’s gargling Drano and Lysol wipes-OH NO): Can I help you?

Younger Son: Yes, ma’am. I need a job. I’m broke, I’m hungry, I need a shower (you do smell like Lilo & Stank), and I can’t pay my bills. I’m willing to do anything. I”ll scrape doggy dookie off of the sidewalk if I have to. I’m desperate (Boy! Babyface and Jodeci have nothing on your begging).

Receptionist: You look like you have strong doggy dookie scraping arms. You have a deal, kid. This job pays $3.50/hr (he can’t live off of that!).

Younger Son: I’ll take it!

*The younger son works at Doggy’s Delights for 2 months, is miserable, still broke, and realizes that he has made a terrible mistake*

Younger Son (to himself): God, please forgive me for not appreciating my Pops. He may not be able to give me everything that I want, but he loves me, he has taken care of my brother and I, and he would give his last for us. I have to go home. I can’t live like this anymore. I’m going to apologize to Pops when I get home. I pray that he’ll forgive me, in Jesus’s name, Amen.

*The younger son has taken his head out of his behind, quits his job, turns his apartment keys back over to his landlord (that schmuck), and immediately runs home-he’d drive home, but his car ran out of gas and has a flat tire; he ain’t got money for that!*

Father: I miss my boy. I wish that he would come home. I can help him with his college applications and give him a job in the repair shop in the meantime. That boy doesn’t know what he’s doing. God, if you will, please bring my boy back home to his family; in Jesus’s mighty name I pray, give thanks, and ask it all, Amen.

*The younger son is right down the street from home, and his father spots him in the distance*

Father: Son!

Younger Son: Dad!

*They run toward each other, give each other a big hug and kiss (on the forehead, silly!), and cry those masculine, manly tears of joy. Their secret’s safe with me*

Father: Praise God! I prayed that you’d come back home. We never wanted you to leave. I love you, man.

Younger Son: I love you too, Dad. I’m so sorry. I’m sorry that I didn’t appreciate what you and Mom have done for Bro and I. The real world is a lot harder and a lot scarier than I thought it was (the show “A Different World” comes to mind), and I now realize what you and Mom go through everyday to take care of us. I appreciate everything that y’all have done for us, and I just hope that you’ll forgive me. The way that I just took and blew your money away, I don’t even deserve to be called your son.

Father: Apology accepted, Son. You’ll always be my boy, no matter what! Take a shower and get dressed. It’s time for a Carter family cookout! Now that we’re all together again, I’ve been dying for you all to try my smoked strawberry cheesecake! Yeah, buddy!

Younger Son: Haha! Sounds good, Dad! I’ll get in the shower now.

*The family has a cookout in the backyard-BBQ, dessert, the works! The older son soon gets in from work and smells the aroma coming from the backyard.*

Younger Son: Bro! How are you doing, man? It’s good to see you! How was work?

Older Son: What are you doing here?! I thought that you had run away from home to be a man all of a sudden. We weren’t good enough for you?

Younger Son: I’m sorry, Bro. I messed up. I came to my senses and came back home. I’m nothing without y’all! I love you, man!

Older Son (upset): I love you too, but you should have stayed where you were. This house was a lot quieter without you, there was a lot less drama, and I was about to turn your room into a personal gym. I have weights and dumbbells coming tomorrow.

Father (to his older son): Now, Son, let’s be happy that he’s home. We’ll work on his mouth, I’ll buy you some noise cancelling headphones, and your mother and I have a surprise for you-we’ve turned the den into a gym for you. My buddy even got me a great deal on an exercise bike. It’s yours, completely paid for. Let’s eat some BBQ and smoked cheesecake!

Older Son: WORD?! Okay, Okay. Thank you, Pops! I love you, Bro! Give me a hug (he proceeds to put his brother in a headlock, and they begin to wrestle like they’ve always done). Let’s eat!

*The entire family enjoys the cookout, Dad’s smoked strawberry cheesecake is THE BOMB (so good!), and everyone lives happily ever after…at least for today. Haha*

-C.N.

Saddleback Kids, “The Prodigal Son” (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJgROx4wFKM

 

28 thoughts on “Come Get Your Son, Fred! The Prodigal Son

  1. Aw, I love this story so much. The thing is, I can totally sympathize with the other brother. He stays home and honors his Dad but there’s no party for him. However, I can understand his Dad’s delight that his son had seen the error of his ways – he was lost but then was found.

    As ever, I love your modern take on it (especially the noise cancelling headphones).

    Looking forward to reading more.

    Best,

    Jean

    1. Thank you so much, Jean! Just as we love to see our children come back home after straying away, God is thrilled when we return to him after living in the world. Jesus Christ is standing right in front of us, with open arms, ready to accept us back into the fold; he’ll never leave us or forsake us. Praise God! I just want to use my skills and abilities to bring people to him. God bless you!

  2. Hey C. N.!
    Great job! Excellent content! Can’t go wrong with King James! I will say that I almost passed on it because it was so long. When that happens, there’s only 2 things you can do. 1) Make it shorter. But that takes away from the awesome content and ultimately the completeness of the message. 2) Layout: Maybe break up the sections to make them more digestible. Sometimes having sections helps. It’s not a message thing or a content thing, it’s a layout and flow thing. You can’t go wrong sticking to the Word of God. Nice work!

    1. Thank you so much, Jim! I really appreciate the tips. I definitely need to make the paragraphs shorter, put more space in between them, and make them easier on the eyes. I don’t want to run people away from Jesus! Haha I will definitely utilize those tips moving forward. God bless you!

  3. A great read once again. I love this and I think we can all relate to it.

    When we are young we all think we know better instead of listening to our parents, but we choose to ignore them and make our own mistakes and in the process wasting in some cases many years doing so.

    Kids today are spoilt rotten and there is nobody else to blame other than the parents.

    When I was a kid, we had no internet, mobile phones, social media, internet games etc.

    We made our own entertainment, and that was great. Nowadays kids need a good kick up there besides, and because of all this have no social skills and don’t know what it is like to play tig in the woods or play football down the local park.

    The world in the last 30 years has changed dramatically and I don’t like what I see.

    Thanks for sharing, I really enjoy it!

    1. Thank you so much, Mick! I completely agree with you! We didn’t grow up with computers, cellphones, tablets, or social media; we enjoyed going outside, riding our bikes, playing tag, playing sports, listening to music, and being kids. Today’s generation has grown up in front of a screen, and while there are definitely some benefits to it, we need to be able to talk to and interact with one another again. I too do not like a lot of the “advancements” that are being made today; we must stay close to God and pray that the blood of Jesus will protect us from the enemy’s schemes. God bless you!

  4. Haha C.N. I loved your remake of the prodigal son story and the humor brought into a great biblical story of God’s forgiveness.

    I think your remake can definitly keep my older son more engaged and help him relate to the bibical story more.

    I will deffinitly have to share it with him.

    Thanks for the Post

    1. Thank you so much, Todd! I definitely want to reach as many people as possible (of all ages) with the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Bible as a whole. This world desperately needs Jesus, and I want people to laugh and enjoy learning about him. Thank you so much for sharing this with your son! I hope that he enjoys it! God bless you!

  5. Hi C.N,

    I love your style and the modern take on the Prodigal son! It makes it so relatable for the younger generation as they can see themselves or someone they know going down that route.

    The Father is so loving and forgiving that no matter how far we stray, He is waiting and ready to embrace us with open arms if we come back to Him. This lesson on forgiveness is for all ages.

    I will be sharing this post with my daughter.

    Thanks for the delightful post

    1. Thank you so much, Ceci! We all need to practice forgiveness and unconditional love. Sure, we’ll get on each other’s nerves from time to time and will want space, but we should never forget who truly loves us, who has helped us along the way, and who will always be there for us. Thank you, Jesus! God is good! God bless you!

  6. Hi C.N, I love this story the modern take helps me relate more to the story. I will definitely be sharing this with my friends and family!! Thanks for sharing 🙂

    1. Thank you so much, Trinity! I’m glad that you’re able to relate to the story (that’s exactly what I was going for. Haha). God bless you!

  7. hey c.n. i really enjoyed reading stories in ur website , u are really talented in writing , and i will save ur website for future posts , best wishes

    1. Thank you so much, Alexzero! I really appreciate you taking time out of your day to visit my site! God bless you!

  8. This is one of my favourite stories in the Bible as there is so much to learn from it, including unconditional love and forgiveness, despite our many mistakes. I can so associate with the fact that we do not always appreciate what our parents do for us until much later in life when our eyes open up when we have to start standing on our own two feet and realise that money does not grow on trees.

    Ps. As a child I could not wait for my bedtime story. Good memories!

    1. Thank you so much, Schalk! We naive kids never seem to understand what our parents go through to take care of us-the sacrifice and struggle is real. Once we’re thrust into the real world (and realize that, in most cases, no one will love and care about us like our parents do-with the exception of God, of course), we begin to see that nothing comes cheap or without hard work. We must learn to appreciate our parents/parent figures everyday, not only on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. God bless you!

  9. Hits right home. The moment we feel we can spread our wings we forget the most precious blessings we have. And it needs reality to slap back some common sense in you.

    1. Thank you so much, Tuma! Yes! Some of us get a little too big for our britches and need to be brought back down to size. God loves us and will always be there, but he will teach us lessons along the way. Never bite the hand that feeds you, as the world can be a scary and unforgiving place. Praise God that he loves us and will never leave us alone! God bless you!

  10. That’s the thing with kids, isn’t it? You never know how they turn out, but you love them all. All differently, but all unconditionally. My life has been that of the prodigal son, but I haven’t turned home yet, so I do not know what to expect. I just hope that the love is still there and that they can forgive me for challenging them and their life style.
    But sometimes that even deepens the feeling, doesn’t it? Thank you for sharing and stay blessed.

    1. Thank you so much for sharing your story, John! I will pray for you and your family so that when you do decide to return home (God will lead you and guide you every step of the way, if you allow him to), hearts can be mended, relationships can be reconciled, and God’s love can (and will) overwhelm you all. My family has experienced its’ share of friction as well, but I always pray for them, pray that we can be the loving and supportive family that he meant for us to be, forgive one another, help one another, and be there for one another. Everything in God’s perfect time. God bless you!

  11. I don’t know how why but almost any family that has two kids are experiencing the same picture: even though the two kids are from the same mother and the same mother, they turn to be so so different!

    If there is any scientific explanation for this “Phenomenon”, I wish I could learn that.

    I also believe that parents’ prayers are what help children A LOT to get on the right track.

    1. Thank you so much, Natalie! Prayer definitely changes things-the prayers of the righteous availeth much. I don’t know what it is about kids sometimes-someone just has to be a rebel. Haha The key, however, is that we love them, are patient with them, pray for them, and trust that God will bring them back home, in spirit and in truth. God is good! Thank you, Jesus! God bless you!

  12. Thank you for that wonderful and educational story.
    It is as you said so well at the beginning, some of our children would be obedient and others would be rebellious and disobedient regardless of our involvement in their education and the will that we have for them to be exemplary children.

    We don’t want him to happen, but if it happens, it is the wish of every parent that their child comes to his senses once he is on the wrong path.

    What I liked about the story of the prodigal son was his decision and the courage to return to his own. He went away arrogant, but he came back humble.
    God loves us and we are like his children. Loveful, he is ready to welcome us no matter what our faults. And we will have to have the courage and humility to come back to him if we have strayed from him (the source of our happiness). These are the lessons I take from this wonderful story.
    And thank you for this post and this beautiful site.
    I’m going to share it with my family and from now on it will be our go-to source when it comes to finding biblical stories to read.

    Thank a lot.

    1. Thank you so much, Sebastian! I really appreciate it! I feel that children, particularly, teenagers, want to discover who they are, what they want to be, and where they fit into the world. Some will stay rooted in the lessons that their parents, teachers, and elders have taught them, but some will feel the need to break free and “find themselves.” We pray that our children will love God, have a true relationship with Jesus Christ, and will come back home, even if they do stray. God loves us and is ready and willing to let us come home, no matter how long we’ve been away from him. We all need to adopt that type of attitude. God bless you!

  13. I really do love your website and what it is all about, and you can’t find a better way to keep children interested and learn than from Jesus Bedtime Stories. I do feel reading these stories to your child before they go to sleep for the night is a great way to improve their sleep, you will not find many children waking up in the middle of the night scared from listening to you read them these stories.

    The last thing a child is exposed to before bed is what is on their brain as they sleep,

    Jeff

    1. Thank you so much, Jeff! Your comment just brought the biggest smile to my face! My grandparents used to read Bible stories to my cousins and I before bed, and it truly helped us to learn about Jesus, love Jesus, and want to follow Jesus. I never have nightmares after spending time in the Word of God. I sleep with such peace. When my last exposure before bed was “Unsolved Mysteries,” it was a rough night. 🙂 Not anymore! God begins and finishes all of my days now! Haha God bless you!

  14. Hi ,thank you for the wonderful post .You said it all my friend ,we are dearly love by God .He is always waiting for us to come back .We left but yet he is the one pursuing us.I remember the day i realized this ,the day my heart was touched ,life has never been the same ever since .I agree with you my friend and thank you again.

    1. Thank you so much, Jim! Thank God that he loves us, will always wait for us with open arms, and will always consider us to be the apple of his eye. Jesus Christ died on Calvary’s cross for us; we are his forever. Thank you, Jesus! The day that I gave my life to Jesus was the best day of my life. I’ll never look back! God bless you!

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