Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: Abiding in His Love 8/27-9/3/26 (08/27/26)
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TITLE: The Porch Light | Previous Challenge Entry
By Marilyn Meiners
09/01/26 -
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She stomped down the hallway to her bedroom and began throwing clothes into a duffel bag.
Martha stared after her daughter. She opened her mouth to speak, then closed it. She knew anything she said would only make Casey angrier.
Mother and daughter had been at odds for two years.
Casey had grown up in a Christian home. She attended church, knew the Bible, and had once enjoyed spending time with her church friends. But somewhere between eighteen and twenty, everything changed.
Her old friends weren't “cool” anymore. Instead, she found new friends at the bar down the street. Smoking, drinking, staying out late, and making choices that broke her mother's heart became her new lifestyle.
Martha tried talking to her.
“Casey, I’m worried about you.”
“Stop!”
“I only want what’s best for you.”
“Shut up!”
Sometimes Casey’s words were even harsher.
As Martha stood in the doorway watching her daughter pack, she knew this argument was different.
“Casey,” she said quietly, “I love you.”
Casey rolled her eyes.
“When I tell you I’m concerned, it’s because I want the best path for your life. This road you’re choosing will only bring you heartache. But if you’ve decided to leave, I won’t stop you.”
“Good,” Casey replied sarcastically.
Martha took a deep breath.
“But remember one thing. When you walk out that door, I’m leaving the porch light on for you. You can come home anytime.”
“Never!” Casey snapped.
An hour later, Martha stood at the window and watched Casey climb into a car with her boyfriend.
No goodbye.
No kiss on the cheek.
Not even a backward glance.
Martha watched until the car disappeared from sight. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Father, watch over her,” she whispered.
That evening, Martha sat in her rocking chair with her Bible. She needed God's Word more than ever. Turning to the story of the prodigal son she read about the father who waited for his wayward son to return.
Perhaps, she thought, this is what I must do.
“Father,” she prayed, “I don’t know where Casey’s choices will take her. I don’t know what she will have to go through. Please watch over her. Protect her. Remind her that You love her—and that I love her too. Bring her home when the time is right. Amen.”
Then Martha walked to the front door and turned on the porch light.
She left it on that night.
And the next.
For four years, the porch light became a quiet testimony of a mother’s love.
Every evening, Martha turned it on.
Every night, she prayed.
And every night, she waited.
Meanwhile, Casey’s life continued down a painful road.
She partied as though there were no consequences. Eventually, she moved in with her boyfriend. He told her he loved her—until she discovered she was pregnant.
Then he disappeared.
He left her with nothing but a few belongings, an empty wallet, and a baby growing inside her.
For the first time, Casey was truly alone.
She had no money.
No home.
No job.
No friends.
But she had a mother.
Could she go home?
Would Mom still love her?
Would the porch light be on?
There was only one way to find out.
The next morning, Casey boarded a bus.
Hours later, it pulled into her hometown. It was five o’clock when she stepped off. She still had a mile to walk.
As she turned the corner onto her old street, she saw something that stopped her in her tracks.
The porch light.
It was shining brightly in the afternoon darkness.
Casey began to laugh—and cry.
She ran the rest of the way.
When Martha opened the door, she gasped. Then she pulled her daughter into her arms.
There were no lectures.
No “I told you so.”
Only tears and an embrace.
“I love you, Casey,” Martha whispered. “And so does God.”
Casey buried her face in her mother’s shoulder.
“I know that now, Mom.”
Jesus said, “Remain in my love.” *
Sometimes abiding in His love means remembering that God's love doesn't disappear when we wander. It doesn't turn off when we make foolish choices. And when we finally turn toward home, the light is still on.
Because that is what abiding love does.
It waits. It welcomes. And it never stops shining.
Story is fiction
*Scripture - John 15:9
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