One Lost Sheep

Now all the tax-collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, ‘This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.’ So he told them this parable: ‘Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.” Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance. ‘Or what woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, “Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.” Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.’ Luke 15:1-10

In the age when everyone relies on GPS, we all believe we cannot get lost. When I was a child, my Dad, strong Navy man, taught us to read maps and charts. He taught us some of the stars in the skies. It was an honor when called on to navigate for him. My Grandpa WalkingStick taught me about walking without getting lost by observing the trees, the mosses and the way the sun moves. We all get lost more often than we like to admit. And getting lost, we can get tangled in the brambles and fall into the rough crevices of life. What a blessing to know we are sought when we are lost and loved in every season.

Gracious Creator, you hung the stars to guide us

set the seas around us to hold us together

watching us with the loving eyes of a parent

who seeks us when we wander far away.

These are times of confusion and distraction

we fail to see the signs and the directions

we lose our way, we fall and get caught

yet in every moment you seek us out.

Help us to use the love you shower on us

renew our strength so we can serve others

let us reach out and help those who are lost

since you rejoice when we are safely all together. Amen.