We have to decide to return to God. Augustine says God's grace comes first, then our response. The father, through this memory, beckons the son. Augustine wins, according to this parable. He is straight-forward and doesn't blame environment, friends, etc.
Confession has power.
His motives are selfish - he is starving. God takes us no matter how we come. He uses secular, material, and physical motives. The son turns home. The Father does all the rest.