Lost and Found

" 'But we had to celebrate
and be glad,
because this brother of yours was dead
and is alive again;
he was lost and is found.' "
(Luke 15:32)
My family and I live in a large, wooded neighborhood of about 2000 acres, including approximately 400 acres of protected wetlands. It is not unusual to see various forms of wildlife, and, a few days ago, as my daughter and I drove home from school, we saw three deer on the side of the road. I slowed down (even less than the 25-mile-per-hour speed limit!) so that Katy and I could take a better look at them (and so I could quickly react should they decide to dart in front of our car!).

They were so beautiful; one was larger and two were smaller, so I assumed that it was a doe with her fawns. Suddenly, something startled them, and the mother and one of her babies ran towards the creek. The other baby, perhaps frightened and disoriented, ran in the opposite direction ... across the road and into the woods.

"Oh, no!" I exclaimed. "The momma has lost one of her babies!"

My pre-teen daughter, who has a soft heart that currently--and, hopefully, temporarily--beats a little stoicly, all but rolled her eyes at me, but, as I pulled over the side of the road, she turned and looked with me through the back windshield of our car. As I silently grieved for the lost fawn, I hoped that she would be reunited with her family before she came to harm.

As I sat neutralized on the side of the road, pondering the lost fawn's fate, the mother (and the fawn that stayed with her) ran back up from the creek, across the road, and into the woods ... presumably to search for her lost baby.

I don't know what happened after that, but I have hope that the family was reunited. Can you just imagine the joy of the mother finding her lost baby ... and the joy of the lost baby seeing her mother again?

My heart swelled as I marveled at the doe's instinct to go after her lost fawn, even though she had another safely with her, and I thought of Jesus' Parable of the Lost Sheep:

" 'Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.' "
(Luke 15:4-7)

In Matthew's parallel account of this parable, Jesus concludes:

"In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost."
(Matthew 18:14)

Oh, beloved! What an incredible Truth! Our Father in heaven, Who uniquely and purposefully created each and every one of us (reference Genesis 1:27, Psalm 139:13, Isaiah 45:12, Jeremiah 1:5, Colossians 1:16, Ephesians 2:10, Revelation 4:11), does not want to lose a single one of us! No matter how many of us are safely within His fold, He constantly seeks those who are lost.

" 'For the Son of Man came to seek
and to save what was lost.' "
(Luke 19:10)

In the ultimate seek-and-rescue mission, God the Father sent His Son, "... our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep" (reference Hebrews 13:20) to literally lay down His life for all of His children.

" 'I tell you the Truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The man who enters by the gate is the Shepherd of His sheep. The watchman opens the gate for Him, and the sheep listen to His voice. He calls His own sheep by name and leads them out. When He has brought out all His own, He goes on ahead of them, and His sheep follow Him because they know His voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice.' Jesus used this figure of speech, but they did not understand what He was telling them. 'I tell you the Truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who ever came before Me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the Gate; whoever enters through Me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have Life, and have it to the full. I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the Good Shepherd; I know My sheep and My sheep know Me--just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father--and I lay down My life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to My voice, and there shall be one flock and one Shepherd. The reason My Father loves Me is that I lay down my life--only to take it up again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from My Father.' "
(John 10:1-18)

My favorite hymn is "Amazing Grace", composed by John Newton between 1760 and 1770. I sing it privately to the Lord all the time in my own little praise and worship offering to Him. Here are the lyrics of the original hymn:

Amazing grace! (how sweet the sound)
That sav’d a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.

’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears reliev’d;
How precious did that grace appear,
The hour I first believ’d!

Thro’ many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace has brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promis’d good to me,
His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures.

Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease;
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who call’d me here below,
Will be forever mine.

And, in a true testimony to the timelessness of the hymn, here is a modern rendition by Chris Tomlin:



Precious Father, I praise You for Your amazing grace! Thank You for seeking Your lost children and for tirelessly searching for those who have strayed. May we repent of our waywardness (reference Jeremiah 31:19), and may we never forget Your commands and your faithfulness (reference Psalm 119:76). Thank You for sending Your son, Jesus Christ, Who has compassion upon Your children who are "harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd" (Matthew 9:36; see also Mark 6:34). And, it is in the name of Jesus Christ--my Lord, Savior, and Good Shepherd--that I pray. Amen.

" 'For this is what
the Sovereign LORD says:
I Myself will search for My sheep
and look after them.
As a shepherd looks after
his scattered flock
when he is with them,
so will I look after my sheep.
I will rescue them from all the places
where they were scattered
on a day of clouds and darkness.
I will bring them out from the nations
and gather them from the countries,
and I will bring them into their own land.
I will pasture them
on the mountains of Israel,
in the ravines and in all the settlements
in the land.
I will tend them in a good pasture,
and the mountain heights of Israel
will be their grazing land.
There they will lie down
in good grazing land,
and there they will feed in a rich pasture
on the mountains of Israel.
I Myself will tend My sheep
and have them lie down,'
declares the Sovereign LORD.
'I will search for the lost
and bring back the strays.
I will bind up the injured
and strengthen the weak,
but the sleek and the strong I will destroy.
I will shepherd the flock with justice.' "

(Ezekiel 34:11-16)

How can I encourage and pray for you today? Please let me know by clicking on "Sparks Share" at the end of today's reflection, and scroll down to the "Comments" box. You may choose to comment anonymously, if you prefer. Feel free to leave your praises and insights as well!

If this topic sparked your interest, see also ...

• "In the Shadow of His Wings"

Copyright 2008. Kathryn B. Wells. All Rights Reserved.

Proclaiming the Proper Prescription

" 'What I tell you in the dark,
speak in the daylight;
what is whispered in your ear,
proclaim from the roofs.' "
(Matthew 10:27;
see also Luke 12:3)
Precious friends, I pray that you are being well-fed with Traci's rich and meaty e-mail devotions during this Feast of Tabernacles!

There is a lot to savor and digest in those devotions, but, at the risk of gorging you, I thought I'd share an extra portion that the Lord laid upon my plate today ...

Once upon a time, I filled my public waiting time by reading newspapers and magazines. In recent years, however, I've begun taking my Bible everywhere I go.

Absolutely, I read it at home, at Bible study, and at worship service. But I don't want to EVER be without it! So, today, I take it everywhere I go. (OK, maybe I don't have it in the grocery cart, but it's on the front seat of my car waiting for me ... and I do have that purse-size edition in the store with me!) Now, whether I'm waiting on a friend at Panera, waiting in the car line at my daughter's school, or waiting in the doctor's office, the love letter from my BFF is always with me.

His Word is written on my heart (reference Deuteronomy 6:6; Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 8:10, 10:16), but that's invisible to a watching world. I worship and praise Him, but those outside my home and my church might never witness it. I bear His fruit (reference Isaiah 32:17; Hosea 10:12; Matthew 3:8; Luke 3:8, 6:43-44; John 15; Romans 7:4; Galatians 5:22-23; Philippians 1:9-11; Colossians 1:10-14; Hebrews 13:15; James 3:17-18), but those who don't know Him might not recognize it.

The Word, which became flesh as Jesus Christ, (reference John 1), is currently invisible to an unseeing world. So, I carry what can presently be seen: His Word as recorded in the Holy Bible.

Oh, how I love my quiet time with Him! Oh, how I love the refuge of my own little Bethany (reference Matthew 21:17; Mark 11:11; Luke 24:50)! But, how can I keep Him all to myself?

I can not. I must not. I should not. He says not.

People are perishing. The enemy is prowling. The spiritually ill are growing fainter by the day, but many do not even know that they are sick.

My heart is drawn to Jesus' words in Matthew 9:12-13: " 'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.' " (reference also Mark 2:17; Luke 5:31; and Hosea 6:6; Matthew 12:9).

My daughter has been ill for about two weeks with a cough, runny nose, and congestion. I assumed she had a cold, so I've been treating her with over-the-counter meds. For the past two days, though, she's was running a low-grade fever, indicating that perhaps her condition was a little more serious than "just a cold". This morning, a doctor confirmed Katy's condition. It was not a cold but bronchitis. A few minutes later, we left with a clear diagnosis and an antibiotic prescription. (And, yes, I had my Bible with me in the waiting room!)

I could have continued to treat Katy with ineffective medications that temporarily masked her symptoms, but her condition would have worsened (aside from a supernatural healing!). Thankfully, I recognized the clues to Katy's illness, but I didn't have to heal her. I just needed to refer her to the doctor.

Beloved, how many people do we see each and every day who are spiritually sick? I see them all around me. They're sick and tired. Sick to death. And, some of them don't even know it. Actually, I think many of them do recognize their symptoms, but they are self-medicating with one thing or another. Drinking. Eating. Shopping. Surfing the net. Trying to fill the void. Searching for relief. Constantly treating the symptoms ... but failing to treat the cause. Masking the aches and pains ... but failing to receive a proper diagnosis. Arbitrarily trying every hopeless placebo ... but missing the Holy prescription.

You know, we are not responsible to heal them. That is the work of the Great Physician. But we can recognize the telltale signs of their condition, and we can refer them to Him.

It is He who "heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds." (Psalm 147:3)

But it is we whom He "has anointed ... to preach good news to the poor ... to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair." (Isaiah 61:1-3)

And, when He returns, if we've saved only ourselves, I believe He will hold us accountable. " 'For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them ... I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice ... I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats. Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet? ... See, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak sheep with your horns until you have driven them away, I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another ... I the LORD have spoken.' " (Ezekiel 34:11-24)

We may rest assured in our salvation, but we must proclaim it before a watching world. We may not be sick, but we must recognize those who are. Jesus is too precious to keep to ourselves. And, He alone provides the prescription for eternal life. We just ... we must ... proclaim His healing grace and refer others to His eternal remedy.

Precious Father, thank You for Your Word! Thank You for Your Son, Jesus Christ! I praise You that one day, Your children will be physically and spiritually whole, that "No one living in Zion will say, 'I am ill'..." (Isaiah 33:24). Until then, let me proclaim Your name before the suffering and the sick, in the hope that they will turn to You. I pray that I may declare You and Your Word fearlessly, as I should (reference Ephesians 6:20). And, it is in the name of Jesus Christ that I submit this prayer to You. Amen.

" 'If anyone is ashamed

of Me and My words

in this adulterous and sinful generation,

the Son of Man will be ashamed of him

when He comes in His Father's glory

with the holy angels.'

And He said to them,

'I tell you the truth,

some who are standing here

will not taste death

before they see

the kingdom of God

come with power.' "

(Mark 8:38-9:1)

How can we encourage and pray for you today? Please let us know by clicking on "Sparks Share" at the end of today's reflection, and scroll down to the "Comments" box. You may choose to comment anonymously, if you prefer. Feel free to leave your praises and insights as well!

If this topic sparked your interest, see also ...

• "Time is Short; Seek the Lord While He May be Found!"

Copyright 2008. Kathryn B. Wells. All Rights Reserved.

Time is Short; Seek the Lord While He May be Found!

"Seek the LORD
while He may be found;
call on Him
while He is near."
(Isaiah 55:6)
Dear friends, most of you reading this post are Christians. If, however, you have not yet received Jesus Christ as Your Savior, please continue reading and be encouraged by the Truth that the Lord loves you and desires a personal relationship with you. He loves you. He created you. He has a plan for you. He does not willingly harm you. He wants to save you!

Do you sometimes wonder why on earth you're here? The Lord told Jeremiah, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you..." (Jeremiah 1:5). The words the Lord spoke to Jeremiah apply to you, too. Before you were ever conceived, the Lord knew you and had a plan for you! He "knit [you] together in [your] mother's womb." (Psalm 139:13).

Regardless of your circumstances, regardless of your sins, regardless of your past, the Lord desires you to come to Him. He does not want you to spend a day on earth--or an eternity in hell--apart from Him.

"For men are not cast off by the Lord forever. Though He brings grief, He will show compassion, so great is His unfailing love. For He does not willingly bring affliction or grief to the children of men."
(Lamentations 3:31-33).

I want you to catch a key word in the above Scripture: "... He does not willingly bring affliction or grief...". The Lord is good! He is righteous and just, mighty and powerful; He is to be reverently feared, but He is good! He does not wish to inflict harm upon you; He desires you to have lasting peace, joy, love, and contentment, which can be attained only through Him. Not by a change of circumstances. Not by a new car. Not by more money. Not by a new relationship. Not through any person or thing on this earth. Only through Him. Earthly things are temporary, binding us to the temporal and blinding us to the eternal. But, the Lord Jesus Christ can set you free.

"So if the Son sets you free,

you will be free indeed."

(John 8:36)

Time is short, dear one. "He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9; see also Ezekiel 18:23, 32, 33:11). Still, time is short. Seek the Lord while He may be found. Choose life. Choose Him. Your eternal home hangs in the balance. If you've never accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, if you've never submitted your life to Him, confess to Him the prayer below. For more information and encouragement, see this "Invitation to Salvation".

Precious Lord Jesus, I am lost. I have chosen to go my own way and have failed to follow You. I have sinned, Lord, and have deliberately separated from You. But, I believe in You, Lord, and I earnestly repent of my sins! I believe that You are the son of God, and I believe that You died on the cross to pay my sin debt in full, once and for all. I believe that You rose from the dead and that through Your death and resurrection, You provided the only way for me to receive eternal life. I believe the words You spoke in John 3:16: " 'For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal live.' " I choose today to accept this gift by faith, and I ask You to come into my heart and into life. Today, I choose to trust You. I accept You as my Savior and my Lord, and I ask You to lead and direct my paths all the days of my life. I pray in Your name, You who are God's perfect Son and my perfect Savior. Amen.

Precious friend, if you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord today, we--and all of heaven!--rejoice in your decision. Please let another Christian know of your choice, so that you can be encouraged in your decision. Please let us know, too, so that we can pray for you. Seek a local church, which believes in and teaches from the Holy Bible, and find fellowship there. Begin reading the Holy Bible, every day! If you do not have a Bible, please let us know by clicking here or by posting a comment below; click on "Sparks Share" at the end of today's reflection, and scroll down to the "Comments" box. You may choose to comment anonymously, if you prefer. Welcome, dear one, to the Royal family!

"But you are a chosen people,
a royal priesthood,
a holy nation,
a people belonging to God,
that you may declare
the praises of Him
Who called you
out of darkness
into His wonderful light."
(1 Peter 2:9)
Fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, if you've read this far, be encouraged to share this salvation message with others! Sound the trumpet, for, "... if the trumpet does not sound a clear call, who will get ready for battle?" (1 Corinthians 14:8). May God richly bless your faithfulness!

Copyright 2008. Kathryn B. Wells. All Rights Reserved.