Losing Something

What do you do when you lose something? If it is something very important, do you just forget about it and not try to look for it? What about if that important thing is lost and you are in a hurry to get somewhere, do you risk being late to find that one thing? Losing something can be a bother to you for a while, especially if that item is something of value. 

Most of us are familiar with the parable of the lost sheep found in Luke 15 4:6. For those who may not be, the parable starts by putting us in the scenario of what we would do if we had 100 sheep and we lost one. Since you have 99 more, do you leave the herd that is still together and go look for that one lost sheep or do you leave and go find that sheep that has wandered off? Then after we find it, we rejoice because the one lost sheep is back with its herd by letting everyone else know and come celebrate with us. 

Let’s say that valuable item that you lost earlier was the keys to your car. You search and search for it until it is found. When you find your keys, you have an instant feel or relief. You celebrate in your mind and maybe around your house for a few minutes but I am sure you don’t call your friends and family to come to celebrate with you because you have found your keys. 

Now, what if that one thing that is lost is the soul of a family member or a friend. We all know someone who is lost but what are we doing to get them back? These lost souls may be drifting further and further away from the herd that it will take a long time to get them back. When we know a friend or family member is lost, do we go above and beyond to try to bring them back? Since we are part of the herd that is following Christ, do we leave it in hopes that we can get that one lost person back or do we stay in the group that is continuing down the right path?

Really we don’t have to leave our group to get that lost soul back but how often do we make an effort to do so? Everywhere we turn there are people that are on the wrong road. Some of these people want help but are too afraid to ask for it. We can’t tell from the outside they are hurting but we know that they need Christ again. We, as followers of Christ, need to try to bring them back to the family. 

Jesus gives this example to let us know that we need to continue to reach out to the lost. Once we bring one back to Christ, there will be another one to go after. 

When one person is found and brought back to the Lord, there is a celebration that takes place. Heaven rejoices for the lost that has been guided back to the herd (Luke 15:7). 

Do you know someone that has ventured off on the wrong path? If so, what are you going to do to get them back? Are you going to wait for someone else to do it? Are you going to wait to see if they will turn themselves around? What happens if times runs out? 

Maybe even you are the one that has taken the wrong turn and has lost the way back to the pack. It can be a hard task to do to try to turn yourself back to Christ but it can be done. Faithful followers of Christ can be found everywhere and are willing to help you. It is up to you to make that change. We will hope and pray that you will repent and come back to Him. 

God is good..