I was lost, but now I'm found.

Our Bell

"Rejoice with me because I found my lost sheep." In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven't strayed away! (Luke 15:6-7)

If you follow this blog, you may remember the "wayfaring stranger" that appeared at the farm a couple of weeks ago. Well, as Paul Harvey would say, "The rest of the story..."

We named our visitor Bell and took her to a nearby veterinarian to see if she had an identification chip. No chip. So we had her vaccinated; and for two weeks, drove to the river cabin every evening to feed our farm guest. When a neighbor complained that Bell was also eating their pets' food, I made the painful decision to surrender her to a no-kill animal rescue center. But my superman wisely said, "Let's at least give her a chance in the kennel at home."  Because she'd had a conniption every time we'd kenneled her at the farm and escaped within five minutes, I thought, it'll never work, but said, "Okay."

On Saturday night at our house, for an hour and a half, Bell barked and barked and barked and barked in the strange confinement of a cage in our basement. Phillip, then, took her for a long walk and prayed, "Lord, what should I do?" Immediately, an idea popped in his mind: cover the cage with a blanket. He did, and Bell slept peacefully through the night. The next day, we moved her to a spacious, outdoor kennel under our deck; and she has not barked once in five days! Our wayfaring stranger is now officially Bell Glassco - beloved pet of Phillip and Jill. Every trip to the farm, Bell goes with us and runs happily through the fields and hunts the woods. A puppy was lost, but now she's found.

In Luke chapter 15, Jesus told three parables of a lost sheep, a lost coin, and a lost son. In beautiful, word-picture stories, the Lord painted a portrait of Father God's great love and pursuit of those who are far from Him.

Beloved, are you lost? Jesus is chasing after you with His goodness and mercy. He'll follow you all the days of your life. Turn around today and be found!