Lost And Found
One of the biggest news stories of the week has been the one about the boys’ soccer team in Thailand that went exploring in an area filled with caves, where they were then stranded deep underground by rising water. Underwater experts were brought in, many watery caves and passages were searched, and after ten desperate days, the word came out, “We’ve found them! They’re alive!” How could it be possible? The words “miracle” and “miraculous” were on everyone’s lips, as it was nearly unbelievable that the boys and their coach had found a higher area in a little cave that wasn’t cold and even provided some drinkable water. Now we’re hearing what a complex rescue operation lies ahead, and we continue to pray for these youngsters and their families.
The Gospel of Luke, chapter 15, includes parables Jesus told about losing and finding, including one of my favorites — the parable of the lost sheep. The pharisees and scribes were grumbling about Jesus associating with sinners, so he told them a parable, beginning with this question: “Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it?” The Lutheran Study Bible enlightened me in a new way with this explanation: “The answer to Jesus’ question is that no one would do this. Sheep left unattended in the wilderness could scatter and be attacked and eaten by wild animals. This shepherd (Jesus) will do anything to bring one sheep home.”
Leave it to Jesus to turn common sense and everyday practices completely around! Rather than accept the loss, he tells us that every single sheep is of such value that it’s worth the risk to search for the stray. And then he tops off this radical statement by saying, “. . . there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”
We like to think we know where we’re going and how to get there, but life doesn’t always follow a road map or a master plan. There can be times in which we feel spiritually lost, wondering how to escape the dark place in which we find ourselves. It’s frightening, lonely, and may seem hopeless, but Jesus himself tells us that he will come looking for us, he won’t give up on us, and he’s not afraid to come into the darkest, most dangerous caves and carry us out on his shoulders. How reassured and blessed we are, knowing that even the foolish stray is worthy of being saved by our shepherd.
The sweet old hymn, “Amazing Grace” expresses the joy of being rescued:
“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found; Was blind, but now I see.”
And there it is — it’s grace, the gift freely and lovingly given, that brings us into relationship with our Lord, and that provides us all we need.
Your friend in Christ,
Mary Rogers
Mary Rogers