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Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he 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.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”

One time, I lost my son at Disney World. We had just come off a ride, cut through the gift shop at the end, but when we turned around and looked, he was gone. Thankfully, we found him in less than thirty minutes, but it felt like it was forever. My heart was racing. My palms were sweaty. My wife had trouble breathing. It was a gut-wrenching experience.

In the Bible story we’re looking at today, Jesus uses an illustration where he says that we are like the sheep of his flock and he is like our shepherd. If one of the flock wanders off, the shepherd doesn’t cut his losses and reason to himself, “At least I have the others. I’ll cut my losses!” No! Just like I did not say to my wife, “Oh well. We didn’t lose all the kids. Le’s just move on.” That would be ridiculous!

When Jesus sees us, his sheep, wandering off away from him, when he sees us lost in sin and blinded by the devil’s lies, he makes it his mission as our Good Shepherd to seek us out. And that’s what he has done! Maybe you have found yourself wandering away from Jesus lately. Maybe when you were growing up, your parents took you to church, but as you got older you took a little break. But guess what! You’re reading this right now! Jesus has never stopped looking for you, and he celebrates the fact that he found you again!

Dear Jesus, forgive me for wandering away from you. Continue to lead and guide me through your Holy Word all the days of my life. Amen.

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All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.