FOUND

 In our weekly online church prayer meeting this week, the very first pointer to pray for was our Country, our metro and our City of Gqeberha. My time landed up focusing on this alone.

The words lost and found suddenly dropped into my spirit. More the word ‘found’, and this sent me on a bit of a discovery of thoughts and Scriptures.

We have seen and experienced much loss in South Africa right from its very foundations. But God is always the God of redemption. He turns things around. He makes what wasn’t into what is. We might be lost through wrong actions through the years, but he will make us found. May SA be found in a way it has yet to be found. We know God sees. May we be found. Found in His loving hands, with his tender eyes of mercy on us. Right now our country is literally groaning in huge distress and people are suffering in all spheres. But the most vulnerable will always be the worst affected.  May we play a part in the process of finding others, so that they too may be found.

LOST - When we think of something/someone who is lost – what have we forgotten? What/who have we left behind? What are we not seeing? What/who have we stopped caring about? Did we go back to look for them/it? Did our focus shift rather towards getting something new and forgetting about the person/thing that is lost? Will we engage in this thought process and look back and find out if there’s something we can do to remedy this oversight? Is there a redemptive thread here that can facilitate us all being found?

Luke 15:10 We have all been lost and then found.

The lost sheep, lost coin and lost son were 3 parables Jesus used to show his redemptive power, but they came on the back of Jesus being accused by his disciples of meeting with sinners, of being welcoming to those who were lost and outcast.

May that be the accusation levelled at us too! May we be found in the places where Jesus chose to go. To the people he chose to spend time with.  May we remember that we carry that redemptive, death overcoming, life giving power as we go into our world and love people and help them to be found by the love we are carrying in our hearts. The love and welcome of Jesus that extends to every person who is made in his image. We have got excited and been so encouraged in our faith by seeing the welcome of love extended by Lebanese Christians to Syrian refugees. May we be found there too, extending that loving welcome right here in our own City.

FOUND

Jeremiah 15:16 ESV – Your words were found, and I ate them. And your words became to me a joy and a delight of my heart, for I am called by your name, O Lord, God of hosts.

What are those words we have found of Jesus that would bring joy and delight to us and our world and to him? What does he say? He certainly speaks of action – Go into all the world (close and far). Keep looking, keep seeing, keep searching, keep seeking, keep loving and caring. Keep being salt and light.

How will we be found? Gen 18:26 Will we be found as one of the righteous that God searches for that could cause the redemption of a City or a country because of their way of living for God? Where will he find us? What will we be found doing for the kingdom? Will we be found living like Jesus did? And maybe taking some flack and sacrifice for it?

You know where I am God. I am found by you. Help me to go help others be found too.
You know where our City is. You see South Africa. Remember us. See us. Bring redemption. Help us to partner with you. May we be your hands and feet, eyes, ears and mouth. Let us remember that sometimes we pray for solutions, and sometimes we land up with the answers right in front of us. It could just be us that you choose to use as part of your redemption plan. May your Holy Spirit flow through us, pour through us to others, to our hurting country. With you we get to be an encouragement to those seeking life, hope, health and help.