Ultimately, what do we learn from this whole parable? Mercy. Mercy? Although the word is never once stated the Father is ultimately showing us how loving and merciful He is. Come on, He opened his arms and welcomed his son back, no questions asked. He showed a kind of love to the son that was completely and totally self-sacrificial. This is the kind of love that we are asked to give and show on a daily basis!

You better believe that the jolly green giant of jealousy was right there in that moment when he hears the music and dancing. I know that my jaw would have dropped and I would be stomping around the house like a mad woman. Think about it though, he has been consistently working for the Lord and not faltering in his faith in the Father. He knows that this is where he will always find what he needs.

A common saying we hear is “home is where the heart is.” Just take a minute and apply it to this scenario. The son knows what he has to do, as discussed yesterday. So he gets up and heads home.

When it was my time to go to college I chose to go to this little rinky-dink town in Ohio, nearly 3000 miles from good ole Rancho Cucamonga (my California hometown). That was a 36 hour drive, without stops, about an 8-9 hour travel day by plane and too far to comprehend by train or foot.

How many of us have gone to our mother or father and said to them, “Hey mom, you know its inevitable. One day, you’re gonna die, and I am going to get an inheritance from you. Well instead of waiting for that inheritance, I want it now.”

How would we describe our relationship with God? Can we say that we seek Him every day with a steady, earnest, and energetic effort? Because that's how the woman in the parable seeks the lost coin -- with diligence. Not only does God do this with us, but we are called to do it with Him as well. After all, a relationship is a two-way street.

Sometimes we feel stuck, helpless. It's not necessarily the feeling of being lost like the wandering sheep in the first parable, but it's a different kind of lost. It can feel hopeless, not just aimless.

We easily identify the shepherd as a Christ figure in the parable of the lost sheep, and it's not just because Jesus is telling the story. He refers to himself as the Good Shepherd in John 10:14-16, and we find similar imagery throughout the entire Bible. It's also easy to picture him as the shepherd because we often find ourselves lost and need to find our way back to God. However, as we reflect further on this parable, it can also be fruitful to place ourselves in the role of the shepherd.

When we get lost in life, we do this interesting thing where we take a while to admit it. Whether it's driving in some new cities, trying to get our life back on track, or simply changing our mind/plan, there's a moment where we have to accept that we could use some clarification. 

What does it mean to be lost? In a Christian context, most of us would immediately think of really bad sinners, people who have no faith or moral compass. We think of ourselves as decent people who