All Together

The other day my son Brendan was playing with some toys. He has a little school bus that is the home to six little characters. Each little character has its owns special place inside the school bus.

Somehow these little characters got separated. Scattered. All of a sudden, my oldest boy Cade, began to look for these little characters. He felt an overwhelming need to have them all together.
It was almost as if he wanted them to be safe. Safe. All together.

I remember when I was a girl, I would do the same thing with my Barbies. If I lost one, even one, I would get frantic. It was as if I couldn't peacefully play Barbies until the lost Barbie was found. I would search the entire house. I would form an actual Barbie search party, often involving my reluctant younger brother. I wouldn't rest until that doll was found.

Lately, I have had a prayer.....that my family, my friends, my church..that the people I have encountered will all walk together in Heaven some day...Lately, I have felt an overwhelming need. A frantic and desperate desire to keep us All Together.

I can only imagine how Jesus feels. We are so much more valuable to Him than toys. I am beginning to understand the verse about the lost sheep. How all of heaven rejoices over one little lost sheep.

I am learning that as a Christian, it is ok to dream big. To have big faith...
But Jesus is showing me that, through acts of love...and through doing the word, they will begin to come in....the lost will be found and we will be all together...

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ²³ Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴ and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.


Then Jesus told them this parable: ⁴ “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? ⁵ And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders ⁶ and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ ⁷ 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.