You are His treasure
Recently, during a family gathering, my sister-in-law lost her orthodontic retainers. She had neatly wrapped them in a napkin and handed them to my brother to keep them safe so she could eat. After eating, playing volleyball, and hanging out, they realized the retainers were missing. They asked around and quickly started looking everywhere for them! They couldn't find them. After no luck finding them, they braved themselves and went looking through the trash for it! Thankfully, after only a few minutes, they found them. They were relieved!
The very next day, after taking care of my little nieces, I noticed that my diamond wedding ring was missing from the counter. I have a bad habit of taking it off when I do dishes and setting it on the kitchen counter. I asked if anyone had seen it… and nothing! I immediately started searching EVERYWHERE for it! It was getting dark, so I started using a flashlight, and I looked around the garden and every inch of the lawn. I continued to search every inch of our house… and nothing! Then, it crossed my mind that there was a possibility of me accidentally throwing it away when I cleaned the stuff from the counter. My last resource was to dig through the trash! Yuck! Not again! Sure enough, it was at the bottom of the trash bag! Digging through the trash two days in a row was not fun at all!! I was so excited when I found it but scared at the same time. What if I missed it by not searching for it thoroughly? My excitement removed the fear of losing it that way. It was a wonderful feeling to have my ring on my hand again.
Both situations made me think of the extent one is willing to go for something valuable. It reminded me of this verse in Luke 15:8:
“And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me, I have found my lost coin.’ In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."
Luke tells us a parable of the lost coin, which focuses on someone, or something being lost, and gives us a glimpse of how God searches for that which is precious to Him. Both the retainers and ring situations immediately made me think of God, and to what extent He would go to find us when we are spiritually lost, for we are precious to Him; I kept thinking we are never too hidden that He stops looking for us. We are never so hidden that we are completely out of His sight.
God's heart is always seeking the lost, no matter what caused us to be lost or where we are.
Many things make us feel distant from God. What is yours?
This past week, I visited an older man who recently lost his wife, a strong believer. I asked him about his relationship with God, and he shared that his relationship with God was dormant. I took this opportunity to share with him about Jesus- about His unconditional love, about salvation, and about God's promise of him seeing his wife again. We ended with a prayer. Again, this encounter reminded me of this verse: how God must feel when one reconciles with Him and how beautiful it must be to see the angels rejoicing when a person decides to follow Jesus.
There is joy in being found! When we realize that God is always longing and searching for us, we don't hide away. We delight in being found by a God who loves us. Others rejoice as well, not just the person being found. As believers, we rejoice when others are found by God and when they choose to follow God.
Do you remember where you were or when God found you?
The place or circumstances where you were found do not define you. You are defined as a loved and precious child of God! The fact that my diamond ring was in the trash doesn't remove its worth! Nothing removes the sentimental value I have for it, although I found it buried in the trash. However, after I found it, somehow, it became even more valuable to me! I cherish it even more now.
It breaks my heart to think of the possibility of losing it again. The same is true for us: You are loved, cherished, and created in God's image! The places where God goes to get us are not always appealing, but He goes anyway to rescue us and bring us back to Him. Just like I was determined to find my wedding ring, God is determined to find those who are lost or have lost their way.
My prayer is that you let God find you for He is always near. I pray that you get tired of being surrounded by worthless things and you expose yourself and let Him see you. He cherishes being with you. I rejoice for you!
Blessings,
Grimelda Sanchez