Greenhouses and Prodigals

The greenhouse I started constructing as my wife's birthday present in June three years ago has morphed into a long term project of patience--hers. I did erect a 12' x 12' structure of treated lumber, but a yellow wood skeleton does not make for much of a gift. My sight shifted to our anniversary in the fall, but all she received was the addition of trusses for the roof. I decided to make it a grand Christmas present, but life kept interfering and the project became a birthday gift once again. Suffice it to say that two years of birthday celebrations, wedding anniversaries, and Christmases have come and gone, and I'm sitting tonight in what will hopefully be her Mother's Day offering this May. I no longer speak in certainties, but use the language of intention--I intend to complete it now by May. My wife patiently extends mercy, but I fear that cord is wearing thin. 

Reflecting on her forbearance, I can't help but imagine the Father waiting on me to keep my childhood promise and exhibit progress toward what I was intended. Why do I still resemble an unfinished greenhouse? Truth be known, the Father has invested lavishly in my success. Much of my life I thought "prodigal" meant "wayward" based on the action of the son in the familiar parable Jesus taught; however, prodigal is defined as "spending money or resources freely and recklessly; wastefully extravagant." With that nuance of the story line, the most glaring prodigal is not the son but the father, who throws a wastefully extravagant and lavish party for the younger son upon his return from the far country. This is where Timothy Keller gets his somewhat surprising title, The Prodigal God. The prodigal father standing at the end of the road and scanning the horizon is God who awaits our return and extravagantly shows his love for us by sacrificing everything for our sake. God's Son, “wasted” for sinners, while the Father patiently awaits our awakening. It's definitely time to bring closure to this limbo-bound greenhouse, and it's also time to move intentionally toward being the man that God invested in lavishly from before he fashioned me in my mother's womb.