Have you ever felt like one more misfit and wondered if there was really room for you at the table?

In their message, One More Misfit, Pastor Nicole deep-dives into one of Jesus’ most powerful stories — the parable of the lost son in Luke 15. It is a story about distance, belonging, identity, and a God who refuses to stop looking for the people others have counted out.

Many of us know what it feels like to be a misfit. Maybe you have felt overlooked, misunderstood, rejected, or like you never quite fit the expectations handed to you. Maybe you have spent years trying to earn acceptance or prove you deserve a place.

Jesus tells a different story.

What the Lost Son Teaches Us About Grace

Through the story of the lost son, this message challenges the way many people have understood God.

The son walks away believing freedom means distance. He leaves home, loses everything, and eventually finds himself isolated and alone. When he finally decides to return, he does not expect restoration — he only hopes to survive.

Instead of shame, he receives compassion.

Rather than making his son beg, explain, or earn his way back, the father runs toward him. Before the son can finish his rehearsed apology, grace has already closed the distance.

One More Misfit reminds us that God’s love is not waiting for us to become acceptable. God’s love meets us exactly where we are.

The Misfits Jesus Keeps Searching For

Throughout scripture, Jesus continually moves toward the people pushed to the margins. Jesus welcomes the people others label as too broken, too different, too sinful, or too far away.

This message invites us to see ourselves in both sons from the story.

Some of us are the younger son, searching for freedom, healing, and a place to come home.

And some of us are the older son; Some of us follow every rule, meet every expectation, and still find ourselves standing outside the celebration, unsure how to receive or extend grace.

Both sons lose their way. Yet, the father loves them both and makes room for them both.

Becoming a Community That Runs Toward One More Misfit

At Refuge, we believe the Church should reflect the heart of Jesus — a place where people do not have to pretend they are whole before they are welcomed.

The table is bigger than we imagined.

The door is still open.

The celebration has already started.

One More Misfit is an invitation to experience the kind of grace that runs toward us, restores us, and then calls us to run toward others.

Because long before we started looking for God, God had already started running toward us.