Lost and Found

​Have you ever lost your child? Even for a short time? I have, and I can tell you it was one of the most stressful days of my life. 

My children are 35 and 33 now, and even though they’re adults, I still worry about them. I worry about them getting into a car crash, getting seriously ill, or other needless worries. I know God says not to worry, but I’m a mother and I still do.

I remember one time when my son was three years old and I was very worried about him. We went to the grocery store; just another typical shopping trip. I had some film I wanted developed, so I went to the service counter. In those days, you put the film in a little bag and wrote what type of prints you wanted, your address, and other things on the bag. 

My son was near me and he wandered over to a toy section close by. I filled out the information for the film and turned back to get him, and he was gone. Terror struck my heart! Where was he? I was sure he hadn’t gone too far, so I searched for him. Several minutes passed, and I still couldn’t find him. I ran to the service counter and told them my son was lost. They gave several bag boys the task of looking for him but found nothing. Where was my son?

Just then, an older woman came into the store, and she was holding my son’s hand. Thank goodness she found him! She said she drove into the parking lot and found my son wandering around in and out of the cars. My son was back; I was so relieved! Those few minutes that he was gone struck fear into my heart. 

After this incident, I started thinking about mothers who loose their children to abduction. How did those mothers endure it?

I also started thinking about Mary in the Bible, when Jesus was lost after the festival of Passover. Mary and Joseph did not find Jesus for three days! Even though Jesus was twelve at that time, it must have been an agonizing time in their life. What were they thinking? Were they thinking of abduction too? Did he wander away and become lost? 

Sometimes we can feel lost without God. The Bible is filled with story after story of people wandering far from him. Most commonly when the Israelites fell away and worshipped false idols. 

Ephesians 2:12 says “Remember that you were at that time without Christ…having no hope and without God in the world”. NRSV

Without God, we are like the Israelites, fallen away from God and living in sin. 

Often in our lives we feel lost from God, struggling to get back into his presence. Even Jesus during his darkest hour felt far from God. How can we return to him?

Here are some suggestions, try confessing your struggles to God. Pray honestly to him. Start a new spiritual routine. Re-engage with prayer, meditation or Bible study. Get to know God again and be found again.

Dear God, help us to gain the strength to get to know you better again. Being lost from you is a hurtful thing. Help us to reestablish a loving relationship with you. Amen






Comments

  1. Pamela M. SteinerJune 27, 2026 at 5:45 AM

    You are doing an excellent job of writing these devotionals. Thank you for sharing them with us. I believe God has gifted you with a wonderful gift. I look forward to reading more as the days go by!

    ReplyDelete

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