lost

I read something this morning that described 'lost' as a thing that is not where it was meant to be. I think the opposite of this must also be true; meaning that this 'thing' is both missing from where it was purposed to belong and present where it was not.

This has got me thinking ... I was one of those "Linus" kids - dragged my blanket around everywhere I went. Not just any blanket, but that very special one that was loved so much it felt like it was alive. I hope that's normal?? Anyway, I actually had two of these blankets, because the first one was lost. I remember where we were when we noticed it was missing. I remember my parents helping me look everywhere. I remember crying a lot. We never did find it. In fact, after giving up, I remember my mom taking out another blanket and explaining to me how special this new one was. Eventually my heart was able to make the transfer and all was well again.

What I read this morning along with that flashback to my childhood has helped me understand the idea of being 'lost' in a new way. I've referred to those who are not 'believers' as 'the lost' many times. But it's never really registered for me what they are lost from; at least not to the degree that it hit this morning. To be lost means you are not where you were intended to be. So, applying that to people, the 'lost' are not where God intended them to be. Which means, man was created - every single one of us- with the intention of being where we belong. And we were intended to be worshipers of God, belonging to Him. Now I know I was just a kid and it was just a blanket, but let me tell you - I grieved the loss of that thing! As ridiculous as this sounds, it felt like a piece of me was missing. That blanket and I 'belonged' to each other. That might not be the best example, but recalling my emotion made me consider what God must feel when it comes to what He has lost. Think of all the people alive right now and all those who have died who are/were lost. That's a lot of blankets. Does God grieve deeply over every last one of them? I think He must, because Jesus shared a lot of parables that had to do with searching for something that was lost. And He also included the emotion felt by the one who found the treasured belonging.

I've lived with an awareness that I belong to God; that I'm redeemed, adopted, and His dearly loved child. But it's never really crossed my mind before that this is what I was intended to be. It wasn't just out of His compassion and grace that He hunted me down; He hunts because we were meant to be His. Because we are His lost treasure. It's why living in the world and all that it offers never satisfies - because He made us to only be satisfied in Him. This means I was created with intentionality and purpose. But I was born lost, knowing neither intention nor purpose, consumed in the darkness of my own sin. It's why when He makes us His own, when He restores us to what we were meant for, when He finds us and saves us that He demands it all. Because all of us, not part of us, was made for Him.

So taking this further, I've thought about how I belong to this family. Through Christ's mind-blowing sacrifice of Himself, I am now restored. I'm found. I'm where I belong (and yet dually waiting for final restoration) ... But treasure is still missing. Spending time with Him and being near Him has somehow caused me to realize that He's still "searching" for what was His. It makes my heart ache. I want desperately for the lost to be found - cuz suddenly I feel that loss too. These individuals, the people I pass on the street or interact with at the store, they were meant to be my family! Something about that is just so compelling ...

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