Not Forgotten by Cheri Holdridge (with an assist by Kurt Young)

There are times when Jesus’ actions just don’t make sense (for those following along from afar, we read Luke 15:1-32 from the Message paraphrase in worship). These parables just aren’t logical. First of all there is this shepherd. The shepherd has 100 sheep. One goes missing. 

Rather than being thankful for the 99, the shepherd leaves them unattended to go and look for the one that is missing. Who does that? It does not make sense. He leaves the 99 at risk for being stolen or getting lost themselves. But Jesus says that the shepherd goes to look for the one, and he rejoices with his friends when he finds the one who had been lost.

That’s how much God loves us. God is not satisfied until God has every one of us in God’s care. It’s not logical. It’s love. Jesus says there is more joy in heaven over the one sinner who is found than there is over the 99 righteous people. 

Then Jesus tells another story. A woman had ten coins. She lost one. She sweeps her house from top to bottom looking for the lost coin and then throws a party with her friends to rejoice. She probably spends more than the value of that lost coin on food and drink for the party with her friends. What sense does that make? No sense at all. But Jesus is making the point that God is not satisfied until every person is found and included in the circle of God’s family. No one can be forgotten. No one can be left behind. That’s how much God loves us. Every one of us. No one can be left out. 

Then there’s the story of the prodigal son. This story makes no sense. In the story, the younger son asks his father for his share of the inheritance. He leaves home, goes into the city and blows all his money on wild living. He ends up broke and gets a job feeding the pigs. He realizes that the hired hands on his father’s farm have it better than he does so he goes home to apologize to his father and ask for a job on the farm. But his father greets him with open arms when he comes home. He gives him a robe and the family ring. He gives instructions to kill the fatted calf and prepare a feast because his son who was left for dead has now returned home. 

Now the father had every reason to be angry at the younger brother. He had wasted his inheritance. The father should have disowned him and sent him away in shame. But the father, who represents God in the story, did not do this. The older brother, of course, is flabbergasted at his father’s actions. The older brother comes in from the fields and finds a feast being prepared for his low life brother. He is furious. He finds his father and says, “How could you do this? I have been here all these years working faithfully for you. You’ve never thrown a party for me and my friends. My brother goes off and wastes your money and he comes home and you throw him a party. It’s not fair.” 

The father tells the brother, “I love you both. You have been here with me and of course I love you. But your brother was lost. He was left for dead and now he is home. We must celebrate and rejoice at his return.”

You see, God never forgets us. No matter how far away from God we may turn, God never forgets us. And God is not satisfied until each one of us is part of God’s family. 

At one time or another each of us has been the lost sheep, the lost coin or the prodigal son. We were the one lost from God. This is the season in life when we were far away from God. Maybe you are in that season now. It’s a season when your life is out of sync with God and God’s desires for you. Sometimes it lasts a few hours, a few days or weeks, or maybe a few years. 

Perhaps you fall into an addiction that you know is not good for you. Or an affair. These are serious matters that turn you away from God and God’s desire for your life. You may need professional help in order to turn your life back around. 

A season of being lost can be a season when we fail to pray and communicate with God. We turn away from God because we get too busy with work and children and responsibilities of running a home. Just like that prodigal son, we wake up one morning and realize that we have made some big mistakes. We are lost from God. We have lost ourselves. 

This is the good news. You are never lost from God. You are never forgotten. God always knows where you are. God always knows your heart. And God loves you. God will forgive your sins. And God will receive you into God’s arms of blessing. All you have to do is ask. 

Like the father in the story of the prodigal son, God wants to welcome us home. God wants to be in relationship with us. 

So what do you do when you find yourself separated from God? The first thing to do is to ask for forgiveness. Confess your sins and know that God will forgive you. This is no small thing. Then forgive yourself. That is also no small thing. It’s hard to forgive ourselves. Then make a plan for how you will live your life in sync with God and God’s desires for you.

Coming to worship on a regular basis is essential. We need this weekly time of corporate worship to praise God, to hear the word of God and to be surrounded by God’s people. Personal prayer is also essential. We need a daily time of prayer to check in with God, to listen to God and to hear God’s desire for us. This is how we stay in step with God. This is how we remember that we belong to God, when we pray every day. 

The most important thing is to remember you are not forgotten. No matter how far from God you may stray, God never strays from you.  So if you’re in a season of feeling lost, I invite you to come home. Come home to God your creator. You belong to God and God loves you. And if you’re not feeling lost, rejoice that you already have a home with God. Don’t take this home for granted. Nurture your relationship with God through daily prayer. You belong to God and God loves you. 

Let us pray: God we give thanks that we have a home in you. We are never forgotten. We thank you that like a good shepherd, when we get lost, you come looking for us. Help us to stay close to you. We love you and we need you. Amen.