“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save those who are lost.” Luke 19:10(NLT)

Never Too Lost

If you’ve read many of my words here you know that I am a memory hoarder. Whether it’s a photograph, hand written note, trinket, song, or just a remembrance that slides into my thoughts, I treasure them all. It’s not that I live in the past, but rather that I cherish it. 

Many years ago when my children were young, my Grandma gave them my Grandpa Frank’s leather case full of keys to play with. Soon, they were used to start a “car” and later to unlock the door to a “house.” The kids loved those keys and so, when it came time for us to leave, Grandma told my son and daughter to take the keys with them. Believe me, they were well used!

Fast forward and we now have grandsons. When putting together their toy box here I thought of those keys and added them to the other things I’d collected. Once again they became a popular source of entertainment bringing an “engine” to life, unlocking a “treasure chest,” or whatever else a little boy’s imagination could come up with. And yes, I too loved that case of keys.

At the end of a visit several years ago as I put things back in their place I realized the well-worn leather case with it’s variety of keys was missing.  I searched high and low, over and under, in and out, but never found them. It seemed they were gone forever and it made me sad to think that I’d lost not just the keys, but something that could never be replaced, the connection they were to my Grandma and Grandpa Frank.

Life is funny. Early last week out of nowhere, those keys came to mind. I don’t know why, just that I once again mourned their loss. On that very day the temperature outside was cooler than it had been in a long time and on a whim I decided I was going to do some trimming in my flower bed. As I began to work it occurred to me that I’d received some fancy clippers as a gift and wondered where they were. I began digging in my gardening/bird feeding pile in the garage and found the tool at the bottom of the heap. As I lifted them up…..are you ready for this? There, lying on the concrete floor underneath the clippers was the beloved key case! I’m not going to lie, a tear or two of joy and thanksgiving were shed. 

How those keys got there? Why I hadn’t I seen them before? I have no idea. However, I do know a reignited memory, unexpected cooler temperatures, and the thought of a gift I could use to make my job easier all lead me to a pile where those long lost keys had laid for years, under the exact tool I was looking for. Coincidence? I think not!

What a perfect lesson for me and maybe for you, too.

We can find ourselves at times in an unexpected place that we’re not even sure how we got to or how to get back from.

We’re never too lost that we won’t be found.

Life circumstances may be heaped upon us, leaving us feeling buried and unseen.

We’re never too lost that we won’t be found.

Overcome with worry and fear, we often believe we’ve lost our connection to God and that it can never be replaced.

We are never too lost that we won’t be found.

Sometimes, we are that one sheep that wanders away from the other 99, goes astray, and lose our way.

We are never too lost that we won’t be found.

“For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search and find my sheep. I will be like a shepherd looking for his scattered flock. I will find my sheep and rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on that dark and cloudy day.”
Ezekiel 34:11-12 (NLT)

Coincidence that God calls himself our Shepherd and promises to find the lost? I think not! He will look high and low, over and under, in and out, whatever it takes to bring us Home where we belong.  I don’t know about you, but I think that’s a memory worth holding on to!

Joining with the lovely group at http://www.fiveminutefriday.com . Click over to read their offerings on the prompt, “Replace.”

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