Dericka Canada Cunningham, GBW Founder
August 28, 2023
This Week's Anchor
“I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”
Luke 15: 7 (NIV)
I don’t know about you, but when I drift away from God, I feel an incredible sense of guilt and shame for not getting into His presence as I should. Over the years, I’ve learned to connect with God’s grace and have compassion for myself as a mechanism to get me back on the right path. With my husband and I recently celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary, I can’t help but recount one particular moment when God cleverly illustrated how much He cares for us and how far He will go to find us when we lose ourselves in the busyness and chaos of our lives.
This moment is truly one of embarrassment. Nevertheless, what God revealed to me through it is too impactful not to share. A few years ago, on the day of our wedding anniversary, I lost my wedding band moments before going out to a celebratory dinner with my husband. I was HURT and distraught attempting to look for that ring. During our dinner, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. My hands didn’t feel right without it, and I knew that as soon as we returned to our house, I was going to search every nook and cranny to find it.
We finally made our way back home after dinner and I frantically searched to find my wedding band. I looked EVERYWHERE, but discovering the ring was to no avail. I was certain that it was somewhere within our home, so I did a mental inventory of my day to track where I could have misplaced it. Earlier that day I threw away the trash, so I figured I would search every trash can in our house to make sure it didn’t somehow (ashamedly) make its way there. As I began searching the trash can in one of our rooms, I remembered taking clothing out of sticky packaging earlier that day, and something (or Someone) told me to check that packaging. Lo’ and behold, I see my wedding band glistening, stuck to the back of a package of some good ole Target children’s clothing. I was shocked and relieved, and at that moment God reminded me of the parables in Luke 15 where Jesus helps us envision how important the lost truly are.
If you recall, in the parable of the lost coin, a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Like me searching for my wedding band, she lights a lamp, sweeps the house, and searches carefully. She rejoices when she finds her lost coin and calls others to share the good news. My experience was very similar. While I was searching for my ring, I felt desperate. Nothing else mattered, and I was willing to do almost anything to find that ring. When I finally retrieved my ring, I was overwhelmed with gratitude and joy, and like the woman, I sure ‘nough called my mama and a couple of friends to let them know about my experience. The other two parables shared in Luke 15 convey similar stories, and all three parables have the same founding themes. First, finding one missing item or person is prioritized—in other words, lost souls (not righteous souls) take precedence. Second, great measures are taken to find what and/or who is lost. If I was willing to get my hands dirty digging into trash cans for a piece of metal, I promise you, God is intentional and determined in searching for us when we are lost. Lastly, compassion and joy are the leading emotions when lost items and people are found—not the condemnation and judgment that we often expect to flood us.
There was a warm moment when I found my wedding band where I felt God speak to me and say, “The same way you desperately searched for this ring is the same way I desperately search for you when you lose your way”. He doesn’t want us lost and He is overjoyed when we are found. For some reason, many of us share the sentiment that once He finds us we will be treated worse, but the opposite is true. Like my ring, we are cherished even more because we were once lost and are now found.
Like the father in the last parable that Jesus shares, God cares more about the fact that we are found than what we did or didn’t do to get lost. It means more to Him that we are recovered and that our lives are changed for the better moving forward (that we repent, pivot, and progress). So, if you find yourself lost today, know that He will find you. I want each of us to read that again, slowly: He…will…find…you. The process of being found might be scary, painful, embarrassing, and messy, but trust me, the unexpected compassion and unconditional love that you’ll be greeted with will make it worth it.
Reflection
What resonates for you about this scripture and/or this devotion?
What contributes to your sense of feeling lost now and/or in the past? In what way(s) can you show compassion for yourself in feeling lost? In what way(s) have you noticed God calling you back in to be found?
What intention(s) do you want to set to connect and/or reconnect with being grounded this week?
Related Scriptures to Ground You Through this Week
Psalms 23: 1-6
Psalms 139: 8-10
Isaiah 41: 10
Jeremiah 33: 3
Luke 15: 1-32
Luke 19: 10
My Through-the-Week Reflection Guide
A Song of Inspiration
Quote of Love & Liberation
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