Something you might want to reflect on in your prayers:

I knew a good father who used to say “I have one child who went to Yale and one who went to jail.” His very accurate words spoke volumes.

Note, the man acknowledged both were his children and identified them as such so his love remained just as God (who is love itself) can’t help but love all his creations.

But love is also like fire: when you feed the fire, the flames grow more intense while leaving the fire makes it less intense. The opposite of love actually isn’t hate because both love and hate are intense caring. The opposite of love is indifference and the same Jesus who tells us to love our enemies is never indifferent just as we are seldom if ever indifferent toward our children.

The man I knew loved both his children because they were both his children, his creations, his legacy — but of course, he was more disappointed and hurt by the choices of one than the other. When he died, the Yale child organized the funeral.

God gives us free will so we can choose whether to be adopted into God’s family or to merely be beloved creatures. That free will includes the ability to deny him and freely choose the one place where God does not go (hell). But he pursues us and our love hoping we will choose the relationship (religion means binding relationship). For love to be real, he must let us choose the desired goal as well as its opposite. Bless you, your family, your ministry, your journey and especially your son for asking the right questions.