Rejoice- Rescue- Light a lamp- Scour the house- Party – The prodigal son – I have sinned against God – Went home to His Father – Embraced by the Father- Confession -Grace -Feast- Lost and now found – Safe and sound – This brother of yours was dead and is he is alive – he was lost and he’s found
Those are just a few of the words that my heart and mind were drawn to in my studying of Luke 15.
There it is friends, our mandate to celebrate our lost brothers and sisters the very act of being found, coming up from the waters of baptism to new life, a new creation in Christ. We have much to celebrate Allen Creek and let us do that together.
One evening last July I forgot to close our garage door and our family dog Lucy got out through the pet door unbeknownst to us. It wasn’t until we were ready for bed when we noticed my mistake. We looked on our nest system video recordings of the evening and in the darkness of night we could make out our feisty pup, we saw her walk around the front yard and then walk down to the sidewalk and make a right. You can be sure we looked high and low. In our pajamas, my family began walking our cul de sac and the adjoining streets searching for her. Lee and I got into the jeep and searched for Lucy in the neighborhood across a busy road we whistled and called for her. We just could not find her. You can be sure our hearts were praying fervently and our sleep that night was restless. In the light of day, when Lucy was still not home, we began driving around our neighborhood again, and asking neighbors if they had seen any sign of our lost pup. Chloe began posting on social media. I filled out the lost dog online forms. We called the animal shelter to try and leave a message. We messaged our neighbors too. I knew the shelter opened at noon so the first opportunity we had we drove to the Everett Animal Shelter, as we were pulling up to the building a woman was getting out of her car- if you can close your eyes for just a moment and imagine the scene- I am pulling into the parking lot and Chloe says “ I see her, I see Lucy!” I began rolling down my window, honking madly and smiling like a crazy woman with tears running down my face and a cracked voice, calling from my car that’s Lucy, she’s ours.”
At Chyla’s school, there is a designated place for lost items. I walk by it weekly, the sign reads Mostly Lost Seldom Found. It is placed in a prominent area of the school – on the way to the lunchroom. The kids walk by this every day and yet it is packed with scarves, mittens, coats, sweatshirts. All belonging to who? Yes, that’s right the very children that walk by their things, on a daily basis. I wonder to myself why are all these things still lost- probably because we stop looking for them, I suppose.
As we reflect on the joy of this month’s baptism- let us not grow weary in finding lost things- lost people matter to God- Jesus teaches his followers this very truth. Luke 15 outlines the joyful celebrations of each lost thing being found- the sheep, the coin and the son.
Luke 15- Jesus tells the parable of the lost sheep- the shepherd leaves the 99 to find the one lost- he brings the sheep back on his shoulders saying “rejoice with me for I have found my sheep which was lost!”
In the same way, Jesus tells of the woman who scours her home looking for the lost coin- she calls her friends and neighbors together saying rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost
And, to me, in the most heartfelt of ways Jesus paints the portrait of the lost son returning home to be embraced by his father.
Jesus tells us how the father responds to the upset and frustrated son who after working the fields all day comes home to the celebration for his lost brother.
The father says “it was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.
