Lost & Found

I crossed the taped off perimeter today.

You see, though I’ve never boasted of ‘Stepford’-esque  organization skills; the day the dialysis boxes moved in all semblance of order went out the door. Now my bedroom has become my storage room, my storage room is my dialysis room, the living room is my bed room and office.  So, like I said, it was definitely time to dive into the disarray and make sense of my disorder.

The contents of one bag especially captured my interest. I found a long forgotten wireless mouse. I’d purchased it at the same time as my laptop, but never needed it.  Several months ago I had dropped it in the bag so I could give it to a friend who was thinking of purchasing one.  I was excited when I found it today – oh, it was little dirty, but none the worse for wear.  I ran my fingers over the smooth palm rest and the gel finger grips.  I right clicked – I left clicked.   I turned it over…….but wait, no.. where *ugh* is…  To my dismay and irritation I realize that the wireless USB plug-in is missing.  My mouse is no longer ‘nearly new’, now it is just junk..  Obsolete, worthless, dirty, junk.  Instinctively I reach to toss the mouse in the trash – after all, without that piece it won’t function the way it is meant to…

I can’t tell you how many times I have done that…. Lost an earring, throw the other one away, lost a sock, throw the other one away, lost my marbles…. Oh, wait… maybe not

Here’s where I’m going with all of this… I got to thinking… I was once like the mouse without the USB port.  Without Jesus, I was a soul, lost and wandering, without hope and unable to function in the way in which I was truly created to be. 

Jesus uses parables (stories) in the New Testament to illustrate how much He loves us and how much we need Him.

Parable of the lost coin – Luke 15:8-10  “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins^[a] and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 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.”

Parable of the lost sheep – Luke 15: 4-7 “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? ⁵ And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders ⁶ and goes home. 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  Funway there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

But maybe you’re like the prodigal son (Luke 15:12-32), fun-loving, free-spirited, rebellious, dirty, hungry, lost?  He chased after every passion, sated every hunger of the flesh – but when the money ran out he found out he was just like the mouse without a USB drive – dirty & useless. who found his sheep – the dirtyson went back to his father and asked for his forgiveness…. The lost—was found…  the useless – useful.   And the dirty--- cleansed and redeemed!!!!

Pretty sad story, huh?  Well, yeah, it would be…. But it doesn’t have to end there!  Just like the widow who found her coin and the shepherd

My mouse’s USB drive is intact – how ‘bout yours?