For the parent seeking peace after being wounded by a wandering loved one.

“If it is possible, as much as it is up to you” raises a hard question: where does your responsibility for peace end, and where does your demand to settle the score begin? You may call retaliation justice, but often it is a clenched fist guarding a wound. Replaying the offense, withholding needed kindness, or helping only to shame the other person keeps vengeance in your hands. Peace does not require pretending the wrong was small or surrendering wise boundaries.

“Give place to God’s wrath” removes you from the judge’s chair. It does not make you judge every motive. Feed the hungry enemy. Give drink to the thirsty one. Goodness must be real, not a hidden sentence. You can refuse vengeance without calling evil good.

Christ went to the cross under injustice and did not answer sin with sin. His resurrection establishes that evil does not have final authority, and his intercession frees you to leave repayment with the Lord rather than manage it yourself. For the prodigal loved one who has wounded you, ask what honest peace and concrete good look like today, then do that without demanding a return. Will you release the demand for repayment and offer the next faithful good?