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July 6, 2009

For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost. Luke 19:10

The current issue of National Geographic Adventure features an article on the best of the great parks—“the grandest, oldest, tallest, wildest and more,” according to its cover. Inside is an essay written by Ken Burns, whose upcoming PBS series on the national parks I mentioned in my first post back in March.

The magazine’s front and introductory photographs are both of St. Mary’s Lake in Glacier National Park, near Kalispell, Montana, where four family members and I visited last summer. What a chilly vacation that was! We even had snow one day—in August!  My Florida-based brother was so intrigued by the weather that he now keeps an update of Kalispell’s temperature on his computer desktop.

Greg also provided a bit of drama while we were at Glacier. We’d driven the spectacular Going-to-the-Sun Road to Logan’s Pass on an overcast and windy day (“We didn’t quite make it to the sun,” my sister-in-law LuAnn commented).  We piled into the visitor center along with a lot of other people, and kept getting separated, as one of us would lag behind to look at an exhibit (usually me), another went outside for the view, another to the bathroom. Finally we all managed to find each other again—except for Greg.

We couldn’t locate that boy anywhere. Joe checked the men’s room and I scoured the parking lot. LuAnn looked in and around the visitor center. Mom huddled against the wind by the car, unable to get in because guess who had the key?

You know how it goes when you’re looking for someone: first you’re puzzled, then annoyed, then worried. Unfortunately, a hiker had gone missing the week before we arrived, so flyers with his name, photo, description and last known whereabouts were posted everywhere. When we couldn’t find Greg, we females, who admittedly have very vivid imaginations, started picturing awful scenarios. What if he fell off a cliff? What if a wild animal got him? He could be laying hurt where no one can see him!

After what seemed like a long time (but was probably only about 20-30 minutes), here comes Greg from the direction of the visitor center. “Where have you been?” we all asked, relieved but a little angry too. “Well, I was looking for you guys, and I thought I saw Penny and LuAnn on the trail, so I followed,” he answered. “After a while, I realized it wasn’t them, and came back.”

LuAnn had the final word. “I was just beginning to wonder if I had a recent picture of you, because I was sure we were going to have to make up a poster!”

Jesus drew on common experiences like this to illustrate spiritual truths, and He used the concept of loss in three parables in Luke 15: a shepherd hunts for a waylaid animal, a woman sweeps her floor carefully to find a missing coin, and a father watches for his son’s return.

Did the sheep sense it was lost? Possibly. Maybe it got stuck somewhere and pitifully bleated until it got rescued. The coin obviously had no clue it was misplaced. What about the Prodigal Son? I doubt he thought he’d gone astray, or if he did, he pushed the idea away. He was too busy living it up. It wasn’t until he sank as low as he could get that he “came to his senses” (Luke 15:17).

And you? Which lost thing are you? Are you the sheep, following the wrong people on the wrong path, wandering from the One who calls Himself the Good Shepherd (John 10:11), and not sure how to get back? Are you the coin, blissfully unaware that you’re lost, quite content to stay in the dirt, not realizing how valuable you are to God? Or are you the son, determined to do things your own way, no matter whom you hurt (yourself included)?

Maybe like me you’ve been all three at one time or another. Let me tell you, in case you didn’t know or need to be reminded—God has made it His life’s mission to find you. Everything about you is imprinted on His mind. And He wants to celebrate when you come back to your rightful place with Him. He’s waiting to throw a party!

We never did discover if that lost hiker was located. I suspect not, since too much time had passed without a sighting. My prayer is that if you feel lost in relation to God, you won’t wait another moment to let Him know you’re ready to be found. He’s already initiated the search.

11 comments

  1. Beth Waring says:

    I appreciate the parallels you draw between the parables of Jesus and the lives of people. So eloquent! Your blog is truly inspiring.

  2. Amy says:

    Once again I read through all your postings and amazed I managed to be the mother of such a delightful, truly Christian daughter. Thank you! MOM

  3. Juliette says:

    Penny, as usually you ar insightful in your comparisions. Feeling lost is such an uncertain feeling. I felt lost in my old church-I wanted to participate in things but rarely did. This is not my way and I was worried until I came to Bethany and knew right away I had found a home. Sometimes we know we are lost and still try to find our way…it is worst to be lost and not know it. I am glad to say I know Jesus Christ!

  4. Juliette says:

    I really can spell but rarely do for your blog – maybe I am lost to thing I can multi-task LOL

  5. Peggy says:

    Penny, Your blogs are very meaningful and inspiring. The way you illustrate the wisdom of scriptures using the awe-inspiring beauty of the National Parks shows what a gifted writer you are!
    Peggy

  6. Penny says:

    Poogy, I’m so thrilled to hear from you. A shout out to one of my best childhood friends, and a happy birthday later this month! Poony

  7. April Lorier says:

    Penny, you have out done yourself on this latest post. There are soooo many parallels to be drawn from Scripture. If one just reads the words of Jesus, we begin to see why Christ seemed to speak in parallels so often. It gave the people a reference base, enabling them to grasp spiritual tools. Your blog is a real blessing for another parallel-writer!!!

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