Ruth Graham: Creating a Safe Place

We have to give people a safe place. And the story of the prodigal is so wonderful because the father embraced him before the prodigal said a word. The father gave him grace, gave him forgiveness, and then the son broke down and confessed. He intended to do it earlier, but the father got there first. And I love that. 

And then he felt safe to say, “Dad, I have sinned.” And in the church, we don’t do that very well. We want everybody to be, you know, nailed down, tucked in, sort of neat. We don’t like messy spirituality. And yet my life is messy. Everybody’s life is messy– everybody’s. Some of us are better at admitting it than others. So I do want to create a safe place for people.