Lost & Found
A friend posted: “Praise report… my engagement ring had lost the diamond about 2 weeks ago. Bruce and I tore apart the house and cars looking for it. No diamond. We pretty much chalked it up to being lost. We have had a lot of challenges financially and we felt Satan has just been testing our patience and pocketbooks lately. God says to stay strong in Him. He promises always to be with us. This has been our comfort.
While cleaning the kitchen floor tonight, to get ready for an event tomorrow night, Bruce saw something sparkle and glitter. My diamond!!! How many times we have walked by here, including the dog who eats everything off the floor! We have been so busy that we had not vacuumed the floor the past 2 weeks. And it was by the trash can, but never in it! What a wonderful surprise! I truly believe it is a God thing. So, take that Satan! In your face!”
I loved that story. My comment on her post was: “Redemption story! So beautiful! My inspiration for an upcoming blog — like the woman in the Bible searching for her lost coin! Thanks be to God! What the enemy meant for evil — God turned it into a testimony for you and ME!”
The woman in Luke 15:8-10 was determined, and she found the coin. Then she was relentless in sharing her good news. Jesus taught this parable, sandwiched between the lost sheep and the lost son stories. He describes the length He will go to find us.
We are all lost diamonds and coins. God desperately wants to get into and change the lost parts of our lives. Jesus used those stories to describe us. The coins must have been very precious, probably worth the daily wage of a worker in today’s times. Fortunately, our Heavenly Father notices everything that gets lost. God goes to the nth degree to search and find the one coin that goes missing.
It describes how valuable we are to Him. He sees us, loves us, and wants us all in the fold. The parable ends with Jesus saying: “In the same way, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” (Luke 15:10)
Maybe you’re tight and secure, even locked in — loving, living, resting in God’s fold. On the other hand, maybe you’re hiding out somewhere in a nook or cranny — holding out — wanting it your way a little longer. But you matter. God wants you in His family. He won’t give up searching for you.
And for those already in the family of God, the Lord seeks the lost coin through you and me. He constantly uses us to be His ambassadors to seek for those lost ones and to bring them “home” to Him.
The Lord is merciful and loving and He places a high value on us, not wishing that any of His kids get lost forever. He loves us with a love that’s hard to understand. God paid the ultimate price to find the lost coin, the lost sheep, and the lost prodigal son. He gave His beloved, one and only Son, to take our place and die for us. Redemption is ours. We can be found!
My prayer is, by God’s grace, that we partner with Him to be like the woman who searched and found the diamond in her ring and like the woman who searched and found her coin. May we become so compassionate towards all those who are lost in this world, that we may find grace to keep our eyes and hearts wide open to find them and bring them home.