Lost and Found

One day Jesus was criticized by religious insiders for hanging out with irreligious outsiders.  In response, he crafted three stories – one of which is one of his best known (Luke 15).  All three are lost and found stories, with each describing great joy when whatever was missing was brought back.

Lost.  Sheep aren’t the brightest of God’s creatures.  They produce wool, and prepared correctly can provide a delicious entrée, but that doesn’t make them smart.  Sometimes people are just like sheep.  They wander away from the source of their food and security into the wild.  Perhaps they are drawn to a good looking patch of weeds.  Their focus is the weeds, and they don’t even realize the danger they’re in until it’s too late.  They could be totally lost, with no way of knowing how to get back to the flock.  They could be attacked.  They could fall off a cliff.  Somebody could BBQ them.

Sometimes we are like sheep, and wander away, focused on something we think is worth the risk.

Coins are even dumber than sheep!  They don’t even have brains.  They just get lost.  Sometimes pockets have holes, and the owner doesn’t even know they’ve lost anything until much later.  Sometimes people are like that.  Nobody tries to lose connection with them, it just happens.  People slip through the cracks in our lives, and we don’t even notice until we realize their absence.  Then we miss them.

Sometimes we are like those coins.  For whatever reason, we got left in the sofa cushions, and didn’t get noticed until it hurt that we didn’t get noticed.

Sons are pretty smart compared to sheep and coins.  But sometimes their superior reasoning ability gets the best of them, and they find themselves doing things that manipulate others into doing things for them.  The son let his lust for women and partying move him to offend the dad who had provided so well for him.  Choosing grace, the father gave the son what he wanted.  In a matter of time, the son blew through the entire sum.  His dreams turned into a nightmare.  He was lower than he ever could have imagined.  The father held no anger toward his son.  Rather, he looked with hope and patience toward the direction of his son’s departure, desperately wanting to see his silhouette once again.  Full of self-loathing, the son finally summoned the courage to return, no longer as a son, but hoping to become a slave.

Sometimes we are sons.  We use everything we have for very selfish ends, and find ourselves very alone when it all runs out.  We don’t feel entitled to anything at that point.

Found.  When the shepherd found the sheep, there was great joy to be found.  But let’s not miss the obvious: the shepherd went looking for what was lost.  He noticed, he cared, he went, and he kept going until he found what went missing.

Somebody was a shepherd for us, and if you’re reading this, they were successful.  Somebody else needs you and me to be like the shepherd and seek them in their lost-ness.  Who sought you?  Who are you seeking?

The woman, when she found her coin, threw a great party.  But let’s not miss the obvious: the woman looked and looked and looked until she found the coin.  She noticed what was missing, cared, and began searching diligently until she found it.

Somebody was the woman for us.  Somebody noticed and cared and came looking for us.  If you are reading this, they were successful.  Somebody you know is like the missing coin, needing you to look in some sofa cushions for them.  Who sought you?  Who are you seeking?

One day the father’s dream came true – he saw the appearance of his son.  But when he got there, the son did not know he was still a son.  The father then searched for his finest robe and signet ring, fully restoring his son to his place in the family.  He risked losing his investment again.  But he believed more in grace and love than in judgment and wrath.

Somebody was the father for us.  They saw beyond our self-loathing to our true identity – a person made in the image of God – and invested in that.  Somebody you know needs you to be the father to them.  They cannot see past their past without your help.  Without you, they will continue in their downward spiral.  With you, there is hope.

Of course, Jesus lived his life just like the shepherd, the woman, and the father.  He was modeling what is true of God, who does the same.  Jesus was famous for saying to people, “Follow me!”  I believe he is still saying it to you and me, wondering if we will recognize that while God has always been pursuing us, he worked through the hands and hearts of people we know to move us from the “lost” to the “found” category.  I believe Jesus is calling us to still follow him, to be the hands and feet and hearts that recognize who is lost, care about them, and move out to gain them back.

If not us, who?

We are the people who don’t give up on people.  We are the people who offer hope to anybody, because we really believe that God is big enough to redeem anyone.

We believe that we were the lost ones once who were at some point found.  If it weren’t for someone, we’d still be lost.  Who will we be the one for?

Let Us Pray

What the exemplary fictitious widow learned from pleading her fake case to the pretend uncaring judge (Luke 18:1-8)…

Why pray when you can worry?  Jesus used the widow as the central figure because every listener knew that she had no ability to help herself out.  The worst thing that the judge would do would be to deny her request, which would land her where she was already.  When we pray, what are we out?  At the very least, prayer calms us down, focuses our attention, and provides an outlet for our stress.  Even if you think God isn’t real, prayer works for the one who prays.  Worrying, on the other hand, only leads to stomach problems.

Stalking helps you get to know a judge pretty well.  When we pray like a stalker, we get to know God much better than if we pray only very occasionally.  As with any relationship, the more time we spend with a person, the more familiar we become with them – how they communicate, their values, their ethos.  Spend more time with God and you are bound to get to know God better, which is the goal of faith.

Nobody knew to pay attention until I acted.  When we devote ourselves to something, others notice and sometimes join you.  You find out that you’re not alone, and that some care enough to come alongside and help.

Through the process I learned what I could do and what I couldn’t – something I would have never learned if I had chosen to be passive.  In other words, there was more to gain than the focus of my pleading.  Life is a process.  Challenges are catalysts for redemption.  The more we pray the more we learn where our limitations are, and discover how much we need help from God and others.

The routine, daily plea helped me get through the day.  Prayer is a form of meditation – focus on a particular thing.  Prayer is constructive and positive.  We don’t know how, exactly, but we do know that prayer works and the ritual of prayer at a minimum acts as a coping mechanism so that we can continue living.

There was a range of ways that justice could be served, so I didn’t get hung up only on what I could see.  Instead of praying as if we knew exactly what needs to happen, maybe we should pray for what we think, but stay open to whatever God has in mind.  I think we miss a lot of what God has for us along the way because we’re overly focused on what we think the answer to prayer should be.

Jesus said that God – in contrast to the unjust judge – would bring justice quickly.  What is justice?  What kind of justice will God bring, and how quick is quickly?  In one of his New Testament letters, Peter speaks about God’s timing being different than our own, but Jesus seemed to imply an immediate response when presented with persistent prayer.

If justice is making things right, but we live in a world where justice is an ongoing process managed by humanity, then what level of justice should we expect?  Perhaps we shouldn’t ask God to do what we can and should do.  And for the reality we all dread – dying and death – while we must pray for our hearts desire, we must also resign ourselves to the fact that we do not live in a perfect world, and things don’t always come out the way we hope and pray.  But while we struggle through those hard times, God is with us to give us strength and hope for tomorrow – a tomorrow where the pain of this life does not exist.   God therefore makes things as right as can be in our limited existence, while assuring us that a fuller justice is yet to come.

So pray for all the reasons the widow persisted.  And pray when it seems as though God is not quick, and when God seems indifferent to the wrong that needs made right.  Because it is in those moments when we experience God most powerfully, taking us to deeper depths and higher heights of God’s presence, where life is sourced from times passed through eternity to come.  Jesus’ brother, James, assures us that the prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective, so keep praying, and be open to the power and effect of God more than your own limited thinking.

My dear friend, abandon yourself, and you will find me.  Give up your will and every title to yourself, and you will always come out ahead, for great grace will be you’re the moment you turn yourself over to me once and for all.  – From The Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis

If we are to experience God, we must be open to God, to the mystical, to the divine, appearing in our lives.  And we must have an openness that is free of any preconditions about how that will happen.  Looking for God in a godly form is the great historical mistake.  – From In Pursuit of the Great White Rabbit by Edward Hays

Lessons on the Way

The disciples learned even when they didn’t know they were learning.  When we walk through life in relationship with God, we see with different eyes.  Our hearts beat a little different rhythm.  Our minds stretch.  Our hearts grow warmer.  And our hands and feet become tools for something greater than ourselves.  Most of the learning, I think, happened for them in retrospect, as it does for most of us.

One day Jesus and the disciples were on the way to Jerusalem from the Sea of Galilee area.  Here’s the story…

“As Jesus continued on toward Jerusalem, he reached the border between Galilee and Samaria.  As he entered a village there, ten lepers stood at a distance, crying out, ‘Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!’

     “He looked at them and said, ‘Go show yourselves to the priests.’ And as they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy.

     "One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, ‘Praise God!’ He fell to the ground at Jesus’ feet, thanking him for what he had done. This man was a Samaritan.

     “Jesus asked, ‘Didn’t I heal ten men? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?’ And Jesus said to the man, ‘Stand up and go. Your faith has healed you.’” (Luke 17:11-19 NLT)

Here are just a few things I think they learned – lessons on the way…

They were headed somewhere.  Jesus was incredibly intentional with his life, and those who joined him were, too.  When we are in relationship with God, we move through life with greater intent, because we know we are part of a greater story – we don’t want to miss out on anything, and we certainly don’t want to mess it up with negligence!  Where are you headed?  With whom are you headed?

They had time to help.  Jesus’ intentional living always allowed for surprises along the way.  Oh, how we need to embody this!  In our rushed existence, how often are we annoyed when a request comes for help because we feel like we don’t have time?  How much margin do you build into your life to allow for the unexpected?

They were increasingly, indiscriminately generous with love.  Lepers were condemned people.  They were forced to live apart from the larger community due to their supposed contagion.  The religious elite considered them to be cursed by God, and therefore showed little care – and often contempt – toward them.  But not Jesus.  The lens he looked through always and only saw people in need of restoration, which is the heart of what salvation is about.  What do you see when you gaze on others – especially those who are generally looked down upon in our culture?  Note: every culture looks down on certain people: the poor, foreigners, and people with certain diseases (currently HIV/AIDS).  Are you seeing through Jesus’ lens or a prescription lens that distorts how you see the world and its people?  How do you label yourself?  How do you label others?  How do both inhibit God’s love from flowing into your life and the lives of others?

They looked people in the eye.  Something changes in us when we see people as people and not just labels.  We identify with them.  We connect with them when eye contact is made.  Do you make eye contact with those who need help?

They discovered that it takes two to tango.  Faith without works is dead.  Dead faith does not deliver life.  The lepers got involved in their restoration first by having faith enough to call out for help.  Then, when Jesus told them to go and show themselves to the priest, they had faith enough to walk away from their isolated encampment toward the community that banished them – no small feat.  This critical lesson would be really important as the disciples had to follow suit in their own lives as the new movement of Jesus followers began to grow.  Are you in the dance with Jesus, or are you simply wanting God to do enough footwork for both of you?

They saw people celebrate their healing.  When God does God’s thing in people’s lives, celebration happens.  What is God doing in your life?  Are you celebrating?

They saw that focused gratitude yields blessing.  Without doubt, all ten lepers who received healing were grateful, but one of them took the opportunity to give credit where it was deserved.  The Samaritan leper thanked Jesus for the healing he received.  Jesus, in return, commended his action and his faith.  When we focus our gratitude toward God as our provider for every good thing, we strengthen our relationship with God, and we open up an opportunity for God to speak to us personally.  How often do you really, really offer thanks to God for the restorative work God has done in your life already, and for the final restoration you know is coming?

They learned that faith isn’t the same as religion.  Jesus commended the Samaritan’s faith.  But I highly doubt that he would have endorsed the Samaritan religion.  This is a provocative point: faith in God leads to restoration because God responds to faith.  This doesn’t mean we take an anything goes approach to theology, especially since we have gained so much in Christ.  But it does mean we join Jesus in affirming faith where it’s found.  Have you overly focused on religion when you could have been celebrating faith?

They learned there is plenty, not scarcity.  Jesus could have been selfish.  His big moment was just around the corner when he would endure unjust, horrific beating and crucifixion.  He could have told the lepers that he needed to reserve his strength for the days ahead.  But he didn’t.  The reason he didn’t was because he knew that the resources of grace from God are limitless, infinite, everlasting.  And he knew that sharing grace with others only added more grace in his life – it didn’t take away anything.  That’s a great truth about grace, and love, and peace, and all the fruits of the Spirit – the more we sow these into those around us, the more we experience ourselves.  Do you sometimes find yourselves stingy when it comes to extending grace to those around you?  Learn this great lesson that when you give of God, you receive more of God than you gave away.  Indeed, the antidote to being bankrupt of love is to love more, for then love will be returned tenfold in myriad ways.  Our relationship with God soars – and so does our life – when we love like God, because it allows that much more of God into our life.

What other lessons did the disciples learn that day?  What did I miss?  What hit you?  Make a comment and let’s learn together - more lessons on the way...

Mustard Seed Faith

Jesus said, probably many times, that if you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could tell a tree to jump in a lake, or a mountain to move to the sea, and it would.

He wasn’t making a case for having a positive mental disposition, as good as that may be.

He was saying that it’s not the size of your faith that matters – it’s the size of your God.

Countless characters in the Bible and outside of it have encountered situations that were well beyond their faith’s capacity.  A lifetime of faith development wouldn’t be enough to pull off what God was calling them to do.  Because it’s not about the size of their faith – what they can control – it’s about the size of God – out of our control.

Noah certainly experienced this reality when God told him to build an ark in the middle of a desert.  People certainly must have thought he was nuts.  But why is it that when people experience God, others think they’re nuts? Shouldn’t it be the other way around?  If God is omnipresent, shouldn’t we feel a little off if we rarely or never experience God?

Since the Enlightenment, humanity has struggled with this. Especially in the West.  Perhaps we have been conditioned into blindness.  We have decided that we must understand (control) everything, and that which is beyond our understanding is suspect until we can.  That’s a problem, because we’ll never be able to fully understand God, who is so much greater than those who God created.  Noah had to come to grips with that reality early if he was going to pull off the ark building project.

Which sort of nuts are you – the type that doesn’t see God or the kind that does?

To make matters worse (and better), our ever-present God calls us to invest ourselves in work that advances the redemption of humanity – a work that sometimes does not jibe with the way many people think.  And the work can be very difficult.  The ark, legend has it, took 100 years to build.  A century of being mocked, laughed at, cartooned in the NY Times, the butt of jokes on late night TV.  A strain on relationships for sure.

I think the hard work is part of it, because it seems that the work is often counter-intuitive and counter-cultural.  And yet, according to Paul, the foolishness of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strengths (1 Cor. 1:24-25).  We would never experience it apart from the challenge of doing what we're called to do.

The good news is that God is with us in the journey.  In the good times and bad times.  And if we embrace it, God’s presence is palpable more often than not, which gives us great confidence that our faith is not in vain.  Paul goes so far as to say that the worst of our struggle here in this life is nothing compared to the joy we will one day experience – when we are fully with God, and when we can see how God was using us in the redemption story (2 Cor. 4:16-18)

It is interesting where this quote from Jesus shows up.  It never shows up after an easy task is depicted, but rather after a difficult task is met by the disciples.  When they were trying to heal a tough case, they were reminded that it wasn’t the size of their faith, but the size of their God that heals.  When challenged to be forgiving, they were reminded of the same thing.

As we face the challenges God is calling us toward, may we remember to trust God more to be God, to look for God more who promised to be with us, and lean on God more who promised to never let us go. 

May we let God be big.

Because it’s not about the size of our faith, it’s about the size of our God.