I've been reading through the Bible this past year, and this December will mark the first time in my life that I will have read every single word (
FINALLY!). Through the years, I'm sure I've read most of it several times over, but I wanted to be certain that I've soaked in every last drop of God's story possible. I've discovered many stories of which I wasn't aware, I've had things clarified, corrected, and put into context, I've "met" a few people I didn't know, and grew closer to some I did.
In the midst of my daily reading, I've found it a bit of struggle to read through overly familiar passages. I deeply desire to read with
FRESH EYES and an
OPEN HEART, I long for God to
BREATHE SOMETHING NEW FROM COMMON STORIES INTO ME. Despite best efforts, sometimes the words in known stories still run together, and my thoughts wander beyond.
In today's reading I came across one such story:
"If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won't he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it?"
Yeah... yeah... you know the story. We've all heard it a thousand times.
"And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, 'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.'"
I'm sure we all can agree. What a nice story, but nothing new...blah blah...
"In the same way there is more joy in heaven over one lost...who...returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven't strayed away." (Luke 15:4-7 NLT)
That's it. Mission accomplished. I've read the story...yet again. I can check my little box. Now on to the next set of verses. Right?
Wait.
What?
There's something I didn't see before. One little word. One little word that demands I read the entire set of verses again. One little word pierced through my familiar rut like a beacon piercing darkness.
One little word...
RETURNS...
***********
Have you ever been lost? You can be and feel lost for so many reasons. Perhaps you've been in a spiritual desert. Maybe you are even in one now? Have you ever struggled with doubt, depression, grief, disappointment? Have you awakened in the midst of the heavy only to find you've wandered beyond home? Perhaps you've grown complacent, and comfort has robbed you of the clarity to see you are fully displaced. Maybe little sins have gotten you off-course. Maybe not-so-little sins have
BUILT A WALL, SEEMINGLY IMPOSSIBLE TO BREAK THROUGH, BETWEEN LOST AND FOUND.
However you've ended up lost... whether it was by your own fault, another person's hurtful actions towards you, or just simply the circumstance of your situation, being lost is just that...
LOST.
We all have been here. You may have to search and sift and dig deep within to see it, but at one point or another,
ALL OF US HAVE BEEN LOST.
***********
I have been lost several times in my life for many different reasons. However, one of the deepest disappointments in my life is that
I ALLOWED MYSELF TO BECOME HOPELESSLY LOST AFTER HAVING BEEN TRULY FOUND.
Here in the dark cloak of midnight, truth pierces like a beacon.
That wondrous word...
RETURNS...
You cannot return if you never belonged.
When you return, you go back to the place from which you came.
HOME...
In the story of the lost sheep, the shepherd left the ninety-nine sheep to search for the one that was lost. It dawned on me new that the one sheep-lost already
BELONGED to the shepherd. The one sheep-lost was
FOUND and carried
HOME.
Do you see it? Do you see the truth-light shining through the darkness?
YOU CAN'T GO HOME IF YOU NEVER HAD A HOME TO BEGIN WITH.
YOU CAN'T RETURN IF YOU DIDN'T HAVE A PLACE TO RETURN TO.
***********
Dearest fellow lost one... forgotten, bedraggled, devastated, misspent, misused, ruined, squandered, wiped out, and wrecked... it's never too late to go home. He will search for you until He finds you.
UNTIL...
HE FINDS YOU...
Do not let shame, regret, remorse, self-punishment, pride, anger, hurt, or loss keep you from calling His name. Call His name. He is searching for you.
"JESUS, HELP."
"FIND ME HERE."
...is enough.
IT'S ALWAYS ENOUGH.
Fellow lost heart...
HOME IS WAITING.
IT DOESN'T MATTER WHERE YOU'VE BEEN, OR WHY YOU'VE BEEN.
IT'S OKAY.
IT'S TIME.
IT'S TIME TO RETURN...
HOME...
I am so grateful that my DAD left the ninety-nine to search for me. I am thankful that it wasn't a loss for Him to seek and find and carry me home. It's hard to believe that He rejoices over me. I know He does, though. If I'm quiet and still enough, I can almost hear "heaven's joy" and the celebration of His song.
YES...
I THINK I CAN HEAR THE SONG...
"Seek the Lord while you can find Him. Call on Him while He is near... Let them turn to the Lord that He may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God for He will forgive generously." (Isaiah 55:6-7 NLT)
