Lent Day 14: Matthew 18

"What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. In the same way, your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish." (Matthew 18:12-14)

In the capitalist era, this passage may be difficult to understand. Some may argue that leaving the ninety-nine sheep to find the one that wandered off is not practical. It would be better to just abandon the lost sheep and move on because it's more profitable.

But if you were the lost sheep, what would you feel? Wouldn't you hope and yearn for the shepherd to come and find you? You're hungry and lost, in an unfamiliar place, not sure where to go, and hearing the howling of a starving wolf in the distance... Wouldn't the voice of the shepherd calling out to you be desperate and essential at that moment?

We often think of ourselves as one of the ninety-nine sheep, safe and sound with the shepherd. We might even believe that we could do without the foolish and lost one sheep. However, our perspective would change if we were that lost and foolish sheep.

Thank you, God, for not abandoning me when I am lost and foolish, not knowing where to go. Holy Spirit, please guide me in truth!