Being Lost
Over the last few weeks we have been looking at different lost things with the kids. This got me thinking about being lost and how we are often lost long before we realise it.
Like the sheep in the story. It was just ambling about enjoying the grass going wherever it wanted to go. Who knows how long it was away from the rest of the flock before it noticed it was in an unfamiliar and dangerous place. The shepherd could have been looking for his lost sheep long before the sheep was aware it was lost.
A good few years ago when my eldest was getting ready to start primary school I took a trip into town with the children to go uniform shopping. As I was looking through the rack of school jumpers to find the right size I briefly took my eyes off my 3 year old. In a flash he had gone. I searched the shop, among the rails of clothes, staff checked in the back and upstairs, no sign of him. I was getting more and more worried. Where could he be?
The police were called and an alert put out to the local shops. It felt like an eternity before he was finally found. And the joy and thankfulness I felt when I had him back safe in my arms
A security guard in the nearby shopping centre found him sitting on one of the coin ride on machines. He was quite happy, no idea he was lost or the dangers that could have befallen him as he wandered all alone across the road, carpark, and through the shopping centre. He was completely unaware that he was being searched for, that I longed for him to be found and brought home safe.
In life we can be unaware that we are lost. We are happy enough doing the things we want to do and going where we want to go, completely oblivious to the danger we are in. Sometimes the realisation that we are lost is a gradual thing, things just start to feel wrong. Other times it is sudden and frightening. However Jesus, The Good Shepherd, is searching for us, wanting us to return to God our Father. He is looking for us long before we know we are lost.
We have all been lost. In Romans 3;23 it says that
"All of us have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
We have been lost in our sin, it is a barrier between us and God.
The good news however is that God is searching for us. Luke 19:10 tells us,
"Jesus came to seek and to save those who are lost."
God loves us more than we can fathom. So much in fact that he sent his Son to save us.
"God loved us so much that he sent his only son, Jesus, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16
And
"God showed his great love for us when Jesus died in our place while we were still sinners." Romans 5:8
Jesus came to earth to die for us and so make a way for us to be found. To break down that barrier between us and God.
When God calls our name we need to answer and stop hiding. We need to call out to him and be repentant like the lost son in the story. When we follow Jesus he will keep us on the right path. He will be there to guide and protect us. We will no longer be lost but feel the embrace of our loving Father God and know the blessed assurance of an eternal life in his presence.
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