Greg Laurie daily devotion - July 4, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
Whatever It Takes
“If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost?” —Matthew 18:12
Have you ever lost something of value? Years ago when my son Jonathan was little, he got lost in a hotel where we were staying. He loved to push the buttons on elevators, so as we were walking to the elevator, he ran ahead of me. I called after him, “Wait until Dad gets there!” But he raced into the elevator and the door promptly closed behind him. I kept pushing the button and waited for what felt like an eternity until the doors finally opened again—with no Jonathan behind them. With security notified, I ran back, got into the elevator, and pushed every single button. Each time the doors opened, I screamed out his name. Finally I found him on the ninth floor, just standing there. I was prepared to do whatever it took to find my son. I would have kicked doors down, if necessary. Failure was not an option.
In Matthew 18, Jesus gave us a picture of how God searches for us when we stray: “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost?” (verse 12).
David, a shepherd himself, said of God: “I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there.” (Psalm 139:7–8)
God will not give up. Remember that when your children go astray. Remember that when you go astray. Failure is not an option for God. He will seek you out. Wherever you go, you never will escape His presence. He will search for you because He loves you.
Summary sentence: Failure is not an option with God.
Copyright © 2011 by Harvest Ministries. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
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