I Was Thinking Today.....

 I was thinking today.....

"Let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins." James 5:20

I was thinking today that sometimes in life,  people you love walk away. They walk away from the truth. They they make choices that we clearly see are wrong, and not just wrong, but dangerous. Sometimes they just don't see, or just don't want to see that their choice is a sin, and that though it may make them happy now, it's terribly dangerous for them.


I was thinking today......

About the parable Jesus told about the "Prodigal Son." He was a boy who ran away. He made bad choices, and he knew better. His father didn't make him stay. He let him go. Then he waited patiently for his return. When his son returned, he welcomed him. He forgave him. He celebrated.


“What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? ⁵ When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. ⁶ And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ ⁷ I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance." Luke 15:4-7


I wondered today....

If God actively goes after the wayward and waits for the sinner's return, how can we help? How can I help? It seems so impossible. It seems so unlikely. I'm a person of action. when I see a problem, I immediately want to know what can I do about it?  As soon as I seen what I can do, I do it! If I can't see a course of action that will solve the problem, well...I get confused. I get frustrated and sad. There shouldn't be a problem that I can't handle. Right?   


Wrong. 


But I remembered today....


"With God all things are possible." Mark 10:27
  
When I see a friend walk away, a friend who knows that they are walking away from the truth, I don't know what to do. I feel confused, frustrated, and sad. Sometimes I feel like my hands are tied. Do you ever feel that way? 

You're hands are not tied! Why? Because our God is bigger than any sin. Our God is the Great Shepherd. We are his sheep,We are not the Shepherd. Go to the shepherd, and tell him all about it. Keep going to the Shepherd and keeping telling him all about it. If he needs your help, he'll show you what to do. He'll tell you what to say. He's got a whole lot more resources than you do though, so he may bring your friend, the lost sheep, home another way.  Just trust the Shepherd and get ready to celebrate.

And so, I sang today....