I got lost the other day, not in my car, but while walking. I wasn’t walking up in the foothills or on trails either, I was in the other half of my subdivision. When you enter our subdivision from the highway, it is divided by a main street, from which you can turn left or right. I always turn right. I don’t think I have ever turned left. When I walk, I usually go from my house to the main street and walk between the divisions up the hill to the school and then turn around and come back. Last Tuesday, I decided that rather than do a U-turn, I’d walk through the other half of our subdivision.
What I discovered is that none of the streets are straight, they curve, dead end into others, go around in circles. I was soon lost. I kept heading in the direction I thought the main street was, hoping that I’d find it before I ran out of energy. I always carry my phone in case I get into trouble, but this was the one day that Bob was off fishing with a friend. Eventually I found the main road and my way home, but not before I added a lot more steps than I had planned.
I kept thinking how easily and quickly I got turned around. It only took a second and I was in unfamiliar territory and uncertain how to get back where I belonged. Have you ever thought about Jesus’ Parable of the Lost Sheep in Luke 15? Ever wondered how that one sheep got separated from the main flock? I did while I was trying to find my way out of that maze of a neighborhood!
There are many people in our world who have lost their way. Maybe they took a wrong turn from the right path. Maybe they never have known the right path. Our Savior is concerned about 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.’” [Luke 15:4-6 NIV]
Father, may my heart mirror that of your Son Jesus with love and concern for the lost. Amen.
