Found

Luke 15 (The Message)

By this time a lot of men and women of doubtful reputation were hanging around Jesus, listening intently. The Pharisees and religion scholars were not pleased, not at all pleased. They growled, "He takes in sinners and eats meals with them, treating them like old friends." Their grumbling triggered this story.

"Suppose one of you had a hundred sheep and lost one. Wouldn't you leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the lost one until you found it? When found, you can be sure you would put it across your shoulders, rejoicing, and when you got home call in your friends and neighbors, saying, 'Celebrate with me! I've found my lost sheep!' Count on it—there's more joy in heaven over one sinner's rescued life than over ninety-nine good people in no need of rescue.

"Or imagine a woman who has ten coins and loses one. Won't she light a lamp and scour the house, looking in every nook and cranny until she finds it? And when she finds it you can be sure she'll call her friends and neighbors: 'Celebrate with me! I found my lost coin!' Count on it—that's the kind of party God's angels throw every time one lost soul turns to God."

A couple of Sundays ago, I got up early and readied myself for church. Later that morning, I realized I was missing something. The ring finger of my left hand was bare. No ring.

I've had a tough history with wedding rings. I lost my first one ten years ago, about 3 months after we got married. The ring my wife placed on my finger "in front of God and everybody" now resides somewhere in the murky sediment of the Buffalo River in middle Tennessee. Note to self --- take off ring before canoe trips.

In the intervening years, I've never permanently lost my new ring, but I've had several close calls. This last time, the item in question was missing for days.

How hard do you look when you lose something? For me, I know that my gift is not for finding small, lost items. Eventually, I give up, go on with life and know that one day it will turn up. Sad, but true.

Thankfully, my wife is like Jesus' character. She lights a lamp, scours every nook and cranny and doesn't quit until she finds what she's looking for. When she found my ring, she came running with the good news.

It was in the sock drawer. Evidently the socks had consipired against me. But they did not prevail.

Our lives have many cycles of lost and found. No matter how lost you feel this morning, the great good news is that God is seeking. God pursues us with the love and grace of Jesus.

God's nature is the relentless pursuit of his children.

Celebrate what is found today! Jesus tells us that there is nothing more important.

Prayer: When we are lost, you search until we are found. Help us to know that we can never escape your loving care. May your Church have passion for those who hurt and feel lost in this world. May we be your instruments of reconciliation.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be. World without end. Amen.
Tomorrow's Reading: Luke 15:11-32