Lost and Found

The Sorrow and The Joy

My wife and I seem to continually be able to lose things. Often times it is something we have just been using. Then, we stop what we are doing and look until we find it, if possible. It does my heart good to see the look on my Mary’s face when she finds something she has lost. She knows how to celebrate the occasion, and rightly so we should.

What have you lost that made you incredibly sad because that which you treasured is gone? At the other extreme, what have you found that you believed was forever gone? What was that feeling like? Did you celebrate the occasion?

When I was three years old, on a cold winter’s day, my uncle, J.L. “Junior” Guinn invited me to walk across the road to check on his farm tractor. Not having money to buy antifreeze for the tractor, he had drained the radiator. But somehow not all the water had drained from the engine block. Sure enough, right there between the fuel line and the rest of the engine was a diamond shaped piece of casting broken from the block. My uncle stood there trying to put the piece back into the hole, as though it would do some good. The moment was so painful for him, I can still remember the shape of the broken metal and exactly where the tractor was parked next to the road.

By the grace of God, things did not stop there for us. Five years later, at the ripe old age of 8 years old, I went to work for my uncle driving another tractor that was just like that one. We prospered and were able to get better equipment from time to time until we eventually had state of the art equipment.

We cannot experience the sorrow of great loss unless we know the value of what we have lost. Remember that detail further into this post. When the value of that which is lost is truly known, the joy of recovery of the loss is abundantly joyous.

Leroy “Red” Sandlin, owner and operator of Sandlin Pump Service, died in November 1997. He was the “go to” pump repairman when one of our water well pumps needed attention. Because we lived so far away from any city or a rural water supply, we relied on dug or drilled wells for water. By 1978 we had rental property. It was necessary to have water wells and sewer systems to service them. Of the seven wells we eventually had, five of them were referred to as deep wells in Eastern Oklahoma with depths ranging between 330 feet and 525 feet. So, with multiple houses on each well, it was necessary to repair them as quickly as possible if one had a problem. Red Sandlin did great work for us and became a close friend. Like my family, he had humble beginnings as he began building his business.

The depths of the wells required having long submersible multi-stage pumps installed near the bottoms of the wells. That required a certain amount of equipment and knowledge beyond the shallower wells. He told me a story about the time his business was just being required to work on submersible pumps for the deeper Oklahoma wells. Times were hard for Red and his young family. Tools were difficult to acquire. But by working diligently and being thrifty he had saved enough to buy a wrench that was necessary to work on the new line of pumps he had begun to service. It was a 9/16” open end and boxed end wrench. Now a set can be bought today in Walmart that contains such a wrench for under $10.00. But in those days, quality tools were rare, and he was able to buy this high quality thin yet strong wrench that would allow him to tighten the nuts holding the motors onto the bottom of the pump ends. A socket and ratchet were too large and typical wrenches, clamping pliers, or adjustable wrenches would not fit into the small gaps in the housing that served to couple to motor and pump together. To have this wrench was a matter of great pride and satisfaction with Red Sandlin because it allowed him to move into the newly developing market for Oklahoma water wells.

He was on his second job since buying the expensive wrench. He had a moment of carelessness and was working on the pump and motor too close to the well. His hands being wet and tightening the nuts as much as he could, the wrench slipped from his hand, glanced on the well casing, and fell into the deep well below. He said, he watched as it bounced off the sides of the well and plopped into the water below. He said he sat there for several minutes dazed by his great loss and grasping the reality he would never be able to retrieve his wrench. Without that wrench it was difficult to tighten the nuts enough to keep them from coming loose because of the operation of the pump over time in the water below. To make matters worse, he just did not have the money to buy another one. He borrowed one from a mechanic to finish the job but wondered what he would do for the next job. Other than the loss of loved ones, he said that was one of the most painful experiences of his life.

As he told the story, it was all he could do to keep from shedding another tear. He said, he felt so foolish sharing that story now because of his own carelessness and because he now had so many wrenches like that one and better, plus power equipment to winch the heavy pipe and pumps from the wells. But I know why he told me. He realized I was in about the same shape as he had been at that moment so many years ago, except on a larger scale.

The work he was doing that day was attempting to retrieve a 26 stage Gould pump from the well for service and it was wedged at about 200 feet down between the wall of the well and a rock that had vibrated from its nesting place in the layers of rock below. There were several homes on that well and it needed to work so families could have potable water and take bathes. Unfortunately, the pump, pipe, rope, and wires broke off in the well and we had to call for the well drillers to come drill another well. They could not drill that well because of the metal in the bottom. But they were able to punch the pump back into the depths of the hole so another pump could be installed above it.

It was a good thing Websters Drilling and Sandlin Pump were willing to work with me. The year was 1988 in late January. The well was back to operating, albeit with less capacity because the problem had caused a cave-in and allowed the new pump to only be installed in about 50 feet of water. While Websters Drilling was drilling the replacement well, January 29, 1988 came to pass, and a drunk driver veered left of center hitting me head-on and causing me to be hospitalized and unable to work for months. Those complications caused me to no longer be able to hire Sandlin Pump. But he had done a good job of educating me with the knowledge of water well pump installation and service. So, my cousin, David Taylor, who worked at Muskogee Iron Works designed and built the apparatus to allow us to install the pump ourselves several months later. The new well furnished ten times the water of the old well and was only 460 feet deep. Red Sandlin celebrated with us over the success of the new well. Eventually, he was able to return to work on another well or two before his death. I miss him, his jovial nature, and kind disposition.

These stories are shared with you because I know you have experienced losing something of great value to you and the pain it caused you. I hope you have other stories of finding things of great value that has brought you abounding joys. There are some stories told by Jesus about the lost and found, the sorrows and the joys. In Jesus’ stories we are instructed about proper etiquette when something is lost and found. Let’s read it.

Jesus has just finished teaching how it is necessary to count the cost before doing something. He then gives an illustration and makes a declaration.

Luke 14:33-35, NLT

So you cannot become My disciple without giving up everything you own.
“Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again?
Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. It is thrown away. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!”

“Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!”

Jesus tells three stories with the same point. When something is told twice in the Bible it marks a higher significance and when it is said three times it is the superlative of importance. Watch for these details.

Was that which was lost valuable to the one who lost it?
What did the person who lost the item do?
When the lost item was recovered what did the person do?

Luke 15:1-24, NLT

Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach.
This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that He was associating with such sinful people—even eating with them!
So Jesus told them this story:
“If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it?
And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders.
When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me because I have 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!
“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it?
And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbors and say, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost coin.’
In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels when even one sinner repents.”
To illustrate the point further, Jesus told them this story: “A man had two sons.
The younger son told his father, ‘I want my share of your estate now before you die.’ So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons.
“A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living.
About the time his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve.
He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields to feed the pigs.
The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything.
“When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger!
I will go home to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you,
and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant.”‘
“So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him.
His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.’
“But his father said to the servants, ‘Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet.
And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast,
for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.’ So the party began.

In each of these three stories told by Jesus, something of great value to its owner was lost and has been found. In all three stories, the joy was so great, the owner of that which was lost could not contain himself or herself and called the neighbors to have a party.

We are working to become a Vibrant 21st Century Church. We are doing that using the the discipline to Focus On Jesus And Follow His Plan, being Better Together as One.

In reference to the principles of these three stories told by Jesus, what should we be doing? How should we feel? How should we react when something is “found”?

How many times have you expressed abounding joy when a new ministry is started in your Local Church? When a person repents of their sin and accepts Christ? When a ministry goal is reached? When someone who has been away, for whatever reason, returns to the fellowship of the Local Church? Hopefully, you have experienced great joy and have expressed the same. But, sadly, I have not done so in every occasion of my Christian walk. I repent asking God to forgive me, to touch my heart and mind, emotion and intellect, to be sensitive to all facets of the lost and found.

The heights of one’s joy cannot be measured except against the depths of one’s sorrow. The depths of our sorrows over the loss of people’s souls and the pain of humanity become exceedingly deeper when we become more and more like Jesus Christ who has created and lost these great treasurers. In the opposite way, our joys become exceedingly fuller as we approach more and more unto the likeness of Jesus Christ.

Jesus taught his disciples to pray.

Matthew 6:9-10, NLT

Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may Your name be kept holy.
May Your Kingdom come soon. May Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. …

“May Your will be done in us earthlings, as it is in by those in heaven.”, slightly amplified version.

When a soul is found, how does heaven behave?

Luke 15:7, KJV

I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

Luke 15:10, KJV

Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

If heaven is rejoicing over the lost being found, what should we be doing? In Jesus parable of earthly examples, those whose loss was recovered were exceedingly joyful and called in their neighbors to celebrate.

Jesus the creator of all is experiencing the high degree of loss because of sin which entered at the Garden of Eden and continues to this day. The creation was made for his honor and glory. It is his most prized possession that was lost.

Since before the fall of mankind, God, in his omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence has been working diligently devoting himself to the recovering that which was lost.

When it is recovered, soul by soul, and at the Great Day of the Lord, God and all of heaven rejoices. I can only imagine, likely I cannot even imagine, the magnitude of the celebration when the Almighty has finished finding that which was lost and invites in all the neighbors for the celebration.

I invite you to join me in celebrating the restoration of the losses. Let us learn to celebrate now that our joys may be measurable against the sorrows brought into our lives because original or personal sin.

Rom 12:1-21, NLT

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him.
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.
Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function,
so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.
In His grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you.
If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well.
If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.
Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.
Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other.
Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.
Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.
When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them.
Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep.
Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!
Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable.
Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.
Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the LORD.
Instead, “If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads.”
Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.

I’ll be looking for you at the Master’s celebration table in the marriage supper of the Lamb.