Lost and Found.

 I have an eleven year old that loses things constantly. The old adage has been used on him more than once "You'd lose your head if it wasn't attached!" Due to his ability to misplace things, the lost and found at his school is a oft-frequented stop. Lunchbox. Jacket. Waterbottle(s). 

Sometimes those can be treasure troves. I remember when different schools or soccer leagues open up lost and found at the end of the year to empty it out. We've found some awesome water bottles, a pair of cleats -- even an unclaimed iPhone years ago (don't judge - it was left at the end of the school year and remained unclaimed for three months). 

Luke 15 has three stories of lost things. All of them are found. Breaking from the 'lost and found' at my sons school - they aren't just sitting there in a pile of other lost things - they are very, very lost. 

The first is the lost sheep. 1 out of 100. 1% of the herd. And the text tells us that the shepherd leaves the other 99 in 'open country' -- implying that they'd be put at some risk -- to go and search after the lost sheep. In this way we all are like sheep - we have gone astray. We meander from one patch of grass to the next, our only direction being our appetite - "This looks good. Oh, that sounds fun. Try this." 

But God, as the good Shepherd, that is Jesus the Christ, searches for us. And friends, He is successful. I didn't get to this on Sunday as the parable doesn't really get to this point - but you gotta know that there isn't a single lost sheep that he hasn't been able to find. He has a 100% success rate at sheep-finding! He found you, after all! 

The second is the lost coin. 1 out of 10. 10% of the dowry most likely for this 'woman.' The woman rummages through her entire home with a lamp seeking after the lost coin. Looks under stuff, moves furniture, sweeps with lots of elbow grease to ensure it hasn't been buried by foot-traffic. We're also like the coin - in that it is helpless. 

Apart from the initial work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, most often through His church, we are unable to seek God. We're enemies of God. Our hearts are absolutely self-centered. Our minds are closed off to His beauty and grandeur. But God, through His church (which is what the woman with the lamp symbolizes) seeks out that which is lost. He too, as the woman with the lamp searching for the lost coin, has 100% success. There's no coin out of his reach - there's no soul beyond the reach of his arm to shed his love and light on. 

The third one - well, that's for next week. The lost son. Not 1%, or 10%, but half. And not just a part of your family's revenue stream (the sheep), nor just a part of your dowry or 'life-savings' (the coin) - an integral, valued, cherished, loved key part of your family - your own flesh and blood. And unlike the sheep who wanders, the coin that is helpless, the son willingly leaves the Father's house, selfishly dishonors the Father by demanding his inheritance now, and self-destructively pursues wild living from outside the safety and security of his family.