In 1760 a seemingly harmless word was coined.  It smacks of being lazy, a spectator – not a player, a smugness which, says astronaut Alan Shepard, can come from success. The word is complacent.

The oldest known seeds to germinate were from a date palm tree near the Dead Sea in Israel. When these 2,000-year-old survivors of the Masada massacre were planted, they grew to three feet tall.

Many children have cut themselves off from their families, even in homes where Jesus Christ was welcomed and modeled by godly parents. The possibility of a loving reunion, like those old seedlings, keeps hope alive.

Mace is an invisible substance used to overwhelm and temporarily blind a dangerous foe. Prodigals in our precious families have tragically allowed their spiritual complacency to nibble on, then swallow their vision of truth. But all hope is not lost.

Our God of miracles can write a new song, changing “A-grazing Mace” to “Amazing Grace!”

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” Proverbs 14:12

“Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.” Proverbs 22:6

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