It is my personal favorite. For both Christians and non-Christians, this is a very applicable story for today. Follow along with me during the next several weeks, as we journey alongside the prodigal son and retrace the footprints of our own life journeys over his footprints. We will walk slowly, careful not to miss our Savior's teaching. We crave instant gratification of our desires.
Instant gratification is like a drug.
In my profession as a real estate appraiser, I have the unique opportunity to go into people's homes and meet a wide cross section of people in my community. I have seen the abuse of credit cards and easy loans shatter families with stress fractures, and the saddest appraisal experience for me is doing an appraisal on a repossessed home where I see children's toys still lying around the house. I am amazed at the despair and despondency in some people's eyes as I enter their homes, after seeing all the grown-up toys outside. Inside, photos of cruises and trips to exotic places line the walls. More often than not, the home loan is not enough to cover the credit card and finance company debt.