The Prodigal Son and Marley & Me

It occurred to me today that if any of us were to come up with a story like Jesus' Parable of the Prodigal Son to illustrate God's love for us, that there would probably be a lot of legalistic nay-sayers that would explode with criticism. "Why does the story not include some sacrificial imagery, or some sort of reference to payment? The father can't just accept him back. It wouldn't be fair, or just!" (Which is exactly the argument presented by the older brother in the story.) Let me be clear- I am not saying that Jesus' death on the cross had/has no meaning. I'm not saying that we don't need Jesus, or that we can bypass Jesus. I do believe that all salvation does go through Jesus Christ. ((Whew!))

Here's my motive in bringing this up- in order to tell another story. I knew this other story is very simplistic, in that it also neglects to include the entire 'plan of salvation'. Just so we're clear-- I already know this!

I just watched the movie 'Marley & Me' again today. I've seen it now five times. It is such a wonderful movie! The movie follows a young couple throughout years of marriage and raising their kids, and the whole time that we get to see their struggles and triumphs, we see how their dog is a part of all of it. The dog chews up the furniture, knocks out the screen on the door, swallows jewelry, ruins dinners and special occasions, alienates neighbors and babysitters, and defies any and every sort of idea of control that they can come up with. Saying that the dog is willful is an understatement! He is self-will run amok!

In the end of the movie the family gets to think back of their lives with Marley, how everything that made them a family involved him. No one asks the question, because it's so obvious what the answer would be-- "Of COURSE we would do it again!" All those years, whenever Marley would chew up the sofa cushions or eat some household appliance, all those little events seemed not only to be huge problems, but reflected flaws in his doggie character. And yet... At the end of the movie when the family is remembering how their lives had been enriched by the company of this dog, those events were not a problem at all. Those weren't flaws in the dog's character, but his way of expressing his joy of life, which didn't always fit in with the expectations of his human family. You can almost hear them say, "Of course everything is forgiven! Of course we love you, Marley! We always did!"

'Marley & Me' is not a story of salvation. But it is a story about life, and how we tend to get way too serious in thinking about our flaws.

As a kid, I used to lay in my bed at night for hours, wracked with guilt that I had laughed at the wrong time in a conversation, or that I had forgotten something obvious in a moment of embarrassment in front of others. I felt ashamed that I could not easily express myself. I would feel red hot embarrassment if the whole family was watching TV and a feminine hygiene commercial played, or if the show had characters that were in bed, or taking their shirt off. I felt guilty about not catching the fly ball earlier in the day, or not having the needed coordination to keep from traveling in basketball. I even felt guilty and embarrassed about stressful misunderstandings between TV characters in the shows, or in fictional stories! As if it weren't enough to be teased and ridiculed by fellow school kids, or chewed out or ignored by my parents, I beat myself up over any and everything, at the drop of a hat! No doubt about it- I was my own worst enemy.

But here's what I'm here to say today--

Just as the father loved his prodigal son and accepted him back without hesitation, without question,

just as the family loved their dog Marley enough to fully accept all of his quirky behavior,

God accepts and loves us. Yes, just like that!

Now, knowing that God loves and accepts us, can we love and accept ourselves? Can we stop being our own worst enemy, yet?