I don’t remember finding anything very significant. I do remember being in town with my daughter around 25 years ago and finding a purse or a wallet. We brought it down to the police station, and they contacted the owner and gave it back to her. And she sent flowers to our house to thank us.
It was delightful to know that I was able to return it to her. I remember losing my watch once – probably around 30 years ago. Somehow, someone found it and contacted me. I’m trying to think of how they knew that it was mine. It might have been a digital device that had my phone number on it. I was deeply grateful.
In Luke 15, we read of three parables about lost items, the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son. I don’t ever remember losing a sheep 😀. I never had a sheep to lose. I certainly lost money a few times. And we lost our kids in shops or shopping centres a couple of times. It didn’t last long, but it was a great relief to find them again.
Jesus told the “Lost” parables to illustrate how God delights in people repenting and returning to Him. I won’t show the whole passage, but I’ll show the final verses in each case:
Luke 15:6-7
....Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 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.
Luke 15:9-10
9 And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Luke 15:21-24
21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.
What prompted Jesus to tell these parables was the Pharisees, despising “sinners” and despising Jesus for mixing with them. I can understand why we might want to mix with godly people and steer clear of people that might be a bad influence. But if we constantly engage with God and draw encouragement from worshipping with godly people, what’s stopping us from being open to mingle with those who might be regarded as “sinners”. And we should remember that we’re all sinners. It’s not that God wants us to settle down into sin. He wants us to aspire to be godly, but in this life, we’ll always have a long way to go. And we should be pleased that He is so welcoming to us when we repent and believe -and that He still loves us though we fall short even after we commit our lives to Him.
1 John 1:7-9
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Here are some other songs based on the “Lost” parables.
Hibernia Gospel 