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You Don’t Have to Be Lost

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How to Avoid Ending Up as Unclaimed Baggage

 

 

We’ve all experienced times when we felt lost, wondering what to do, unsure of a decision. We don’t have to stumble around in the dark, bumping into things.


There is an Unclaimed Baggage Center in Alabama where an average of 7,000 unclaimed airline items go every day. It amazes me that much luggage is unclaimed or lost. I understand things get lost, but if it was my luggage, you can be sure that I would be looking long and hard.


Most of us are familiar with the stories Jesus tells about the lost sheep and coin in Luke 15:1-10. Both tell about the importance of being found, the importance of finding, and the joy when the lost are found. We are one or the other, either the lost or the ones seeking the lost. God is looking for the lost and can use help.

 

Everyone can be found.


Many people choose not to be found; they prefer the darkness. Less is required of us if we’re unseen, in the shadows. Life is easier with the light turned off.


Hank Williams wrote the famous song “I Saw the Light” 1948. “Williams often sang his song as if he was a man facing the end, desperate to believe in a salvation that he didn’t think existed. Was he trying to convince himself of the reality of the Gospel?


He sang: “I wandered so aimless, life filled with sin; I wouldn’t ask my dear Savior in. Then Jesus came like a stranger in the night; Praise the Lord, I saw the light!” The chorus went, “I saw the light, I saw the light. No more darkness; no more night. Now I’m so happy no sorrow in sight. Praise the Lord, I saw the light!”


Near the end of his life he was doing a show in San Diego but stumbled drunk off stage after only two songs. His friend, country performer Minnie Pearl tried to sober him as they rode around town in the back seat of his Cadillac so he could do his second show. She got him to join her in singing “I Saw the Light” thinking it might help sober him, but after one verse, Hank put his head in his hands and said, “O Minnie, Minnie, I don’t see no light. There ain’t no light.”


“But there was light, only it seems Hank refused it.”


Don’t spend your life in a pile of unclaimed baggage in some dark corner somewhere.

 

Turn on the light.


If you can’t find the switch or don’t know how to turn it on, ask for help. There is someone out there who can help you.

 

 

When We’re Being Sought, Why Do We Hide?

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Hide and Seek Shouldn’t Be Played in the Game of Life

A man was having computer issues when working on a Saturday. He didn’t want to bother the IT tech at home, but after continued issues, decided to call him. The phone was answered by the tech’s young son with a whispered, “Hello.”. The man asked if he could speak with the boy’s father. He whispered, “No.”. “What about your mother, can I speak with her?” Again, at a whisper he answered, “No.”. In the background the man could hear people yelling the boy’s name and what sounded like sirens and…a helicopter. The man asked the boy what the commotion was, he answered, once again in a whisper…

They’re looking for me.

After Jesus’ crucifixion His followers were lost. Last week we discussed the empty tomb and the disbelief that accompanied it. In Luke Chapter 24 Verses 13-35, the story continues with two of Jesus’ followers walking to the town of Emmaus. As they walked, they were joined by Jesus but didn’t recognize Him. They were enjoying their time with Him so much, they asked Him to join them for supper. When Jesus gave thanks and broke the bread, they recognized Him, and He disappeared. They immediately went back to Jerusalem and told the other followers.

After we’re found by Jesus, we need to tell others.

It’s hard to imagine what it would be like to be confronted by someone who we thought to be dead.

There is a story of two brothers who fought in the Civil War. Both were told that the other was killed in action. After the war they went separate ways. One back home and the other to a new life. More than forty years later at a Civil War reunion they came face to face. They weren’t hiding from each other; they just were unaware. This was a big loss due to not seeking.

Too often, people go through life unaware that our brother, Jesus, is alive.

Jesus came searching for us when He came to earth 2000 years ago and continues to look for us today. Being found in this game of hide and seek is how we win.