Delia's DSi

It frustrates me to no end when things get lost. I don't typically 'lose' things ... they may go missing under a pile of coupons, or under a load of unfolded laundry ... but I know that what I'm looking for has to be SOMEWHERE. So when something important really and truly goes missing, it irks me.

Take for example my daughter Delia's DSi. This was a Christmas present for our savvy seven year old, and her favorite-ever toy. We had been letting her take it with her to school, as the bus ride is quite long. So one day I realize she is not looking like herself (which means, NOT hunched over an electronic device.) After a long and torturous battle to get the truth out - that her DSi was missing - we had a long and torturous search. For days. The house, already destroyed from two high energy kids and kibble-dropping and squeaky-toy shredding dogs, went into over-drive chaos. Piles were turned and overturned. Corners were swept. Beds looked under. We looked high, we looked low... but no DSi was to be found.

Then the phone calls went out: to friends, to neighbors, to the school, to the bus garage ... but no one either had it or had seen it. Now through all of this, Delia was taking it in stride. While I was twisting over the profound annoyance of it all, she found other things to occupy her. But I simply couldn't get it out of my mind. WHERE was this blasted toy? Long story short (too late!) I found it... days later... in her school backpack. Now, I'm telling you - I had checked that backpack of hers multiple times, as did Delia and my husband, Nick. It wasn't in there. It just wasn't. But one day after praying long and hard (please oh please oh PLEASE this is driving me crazy!) I felt led to check the pack one more time. And lo and behold, there it was. The tech-toy was handed over to a happy little girl, and the universe was back in order.

I was in church a few days afterward, sitting and stewing about how upset I had been over the whole “DSi disturbance.”  Granted, I had chosen to react as I did, chose how upset I got about it, so most of the emotional trauma was admittedly self-inflicted. But then I had a thought. The DSi had never really been lost ... it was just misplaced. Not gone for good ... we just hadn't found it yet. It occurred to me (being in church and all) that the whole 'lost and found' concept was kind of a biggie on the spiritual Richter scale. “The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost”  ran through my mind. If the same principles apply to people as to objects, then technically people who do not yet ‘know’ God cannot truly be called "lost" - because they are certainly not lost to Him. He sees the beginning and ending of all things - and is not limited by a linear way of thinking. In His mind, they just haven’t met Him yet.

The Bible has a bunch of interesting parables about the whole 'lost' concept. The lost sheep, the lost coin, the lost son.  Lots of lost stuff, lots of repetition. God does this because, well, people are human. Repeating an idea makes it more likely for it to sink into our thick little skulls. So when we get repeat parables, you can be sure He's saying "Get it? Got it? Good."

Sometimes the things we lose are “real” items - car keys, eyeglasses (which rates as a double annoyance because you NEED your glasses to find your glasses.) Sometimes the things we lose aren’t quite so tangible, but that doesn’t make them any less valuable.

Lost your patience? Might find it after a nap. Lost your sense of humor? Try sorting through those seventeen loads of laundry... I’m sure it’s under there somewhere. Lost your innocence? Sorry, can’t get that one back for you, but hey, at least enjoy the wisdom you’ve gained in its stead. Lost your marbles? Not my area of expertise ... but if you ever do find them, I'll be glad to play a game with you. Lost your faith? That is a little harder. I can't tell you what pile to look under, but I can point you to the One who can find it for you. Same dude who liked to parade out the parables.

So when you’ve lost something in your life, or even when you are feeling a little lost yourself … maybe it’s worth making a little extra effort to uncover what’s gone missing. Because until you go looking for it, you never really know what kind of treasure you’re going to find.