Matthew 18:12-14
What do you think? If a man owns 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? 13 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. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.
Many years ago, on a leased ranch in Colorado, my brother and I were guiding elk and mule deer hunters. The ranch had a flock of sheep and a shepherd there and every once in a while we would see him out on his horse watching the flock. He would sit on his horse for hours and just watching those sheep.
Those shepherds lived their entire summer high in the mountains, alone in a little covered wagon and the only family that they had was the ewes and lambs.
I heard stories of some of these men chasing and fighting off bears and coyotes that were threatening the sheep... they cared for those sheep as if they were their own infant children. They knew if one was missing and they searched until they found it, as long as it took.
As much as those lonely shepherds love their lambs God loves us immeasurably more? We can face anything in life because we can rest assured that He loves us so much that anything and everything that we come against is already under His control before it even happens.
We will come up against some very tough things in life, it is inevitable. The closer we grow to Christ the more we will face adversity. Satan wants us to become discouraged and defeated, but there is victory in the relationship with Jesus... we just have to accept the victory.
God gave His all, His only Son to gather us back in as His lost sheep. When we come to Him, there is a celebration in heaven on our behalf.
Luke 15:6-7
When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, 'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.' 7 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!
Our value is far greater than you and I can ever imagine. Whenever we question our worth all we have to do it re-read Luke 15 and John 3:16
John 3:16
Fir God so loved the world (you and I) that He gave His only begotten son, that who-so-ever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.
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