Friday after the Third Sunday of Advent, 12/22/00

Luke 15: 9, 10 "And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and

says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.' In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." --NIV

In the name of the One Whose angels rejoice over the repentant sinner, amen.

Ever lost something valuable? If you're like me you just about run around in circles until you find it. I remember as a child my family lost one of the keys to our garage. It was not an attached garage, so we couldn't simply leave the door open. More than that, my dad had many valuable tools in his garage, so we didn't want to have someone find it and steal everything. After a couple days we found the key…in a loaf of

bread! You can't imagine how relieved and how happy we were when it was

found.

God often loses things that are very valuable; He loses people. It isn't that God is forgetful or careless, it's that people wander off. You never know where they will turn up, either. They may turn up in a cult.

They might turn up in adultery, or in an addiction. Perhaps they will turn up in greed, or lust for power and fame. Sadly, they don't always turn up, but when they do, there is great joy in God's family.

From our passage we see that the difference between being lost and being found is repentance. If you wish to bring joy to God and the angels, live a life of repentance. Nothing could make the Lord happier than for

you to live a life of humble repentance. After all, He paid a great price for you. You are infinitely valuable to Him. Amen.

Prayer: Dear heavenly Father, You bought us at the price of Your Son's life. By

Your Holy Spirit, keep us repentant-always mindful of our sins, and holding on to Jesus' sacrifice by faith. Guard our precious faith so that we may praise Your name forever, amen.