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The Parable of the Lost Landscaping Plan
Don’t matter how much money you got, there’s only two kinds of people: there’s saved people and there’s lost people.
Bob Dylan
Have you ever lost something?
You remember having the item at one point in time, but now you can’t find it.
The search begins. You look all over the place for your lost item. Every closet, every corner, and every crack is checked and checked again. You look under every bed, and you look everywhere else. The search continues until you find the lost item or until you lose hope.
When you find the item (especially after a long search process), you celebrate.
Recurring Theme
This seems to be a recurring theme in my life. In June, I wrote about The Parable of the Lost Blue Water Bottle. There was much rejoicing when I found my lost bottle. Since I made this story public, I’ve had several people point out my water bottle, “Is that the famous blue water bottle?”
Almost two years ago, I wrote about a lost item.
Over two years ago, I wrote about a lost child.
Four years ago, I wrote about a lost key.
Over five years ago, I wrote about a lost landscaping plan.
The lost and found theme that seems to run through my life is powerful. Despite the countless stories of missing items, I’m generally a very organized person. But God seems to be trying to get my attention.
Found!
My collection of lost and found stories grew last weekend when I discovered a long-lost item.
At my house, we have been going through a season of de-cluttering. We are selling and giving things away, and we are simply discarding things we no longer need. As we go through each room in the house, we take time to sort through the “stuff” we have accumulated since we moved into our house ten years ago. I’m amazed to discover how many things we never use.
Last weekend, we spent the day cleaning up our basement. As I was cleaning up my workshop area, I came across a brown bag full of paperwork. I decided I should probably look through the paperwork to see if anything needed to be saved. After twenty minutes of paging through appliance owner’s manuals and other miscellaneous pieces of paper, I discovered a familiar folded up document – I found our lost landscaping plan!
A smile immediately crossed my face, and the smile quickly turned into laughter. I couldn’t contain my excitement. I ran upstairs where Leanne and Isaac were preparing lunch, and I unfolded the landscaping plan for them to see. They could hardly believe their eyes.
We had the landscaping plan designed for us shortly after we moved into the house. We had big dreams of using the plan to beautify our property over the years. Unfortunately, we lost the landscaping plan several years ago, and the initial landscaping plans were replaced with a new make-it-up-as-we-go plan. We looked high and low (but not in the brown bag in the basement).
Whenever we lose an item in our house, our family jokes that the lost item must be with the landscaping plan.
This week, we celebrated the return of our landscaping plan with our H.O.P.E. group. Leanne made cake. I shared the story of our rediscovered landscaping plans. And our friends helped us celebrate.
I’m planning to frame the landscaping plan to hang in our house as a reminder. This new wall hanging will remind our family of the humorous story that has become a part of our history. And the wall hanging will remind me of something else…
We Were All Lost
At one point or another, we were all lost. God went to great lengths to “find” us. He sent his Son to give us a way home. When we decide to follow Christ, there is much rejoicing in heaven. My lost landscaping plan reminds of the measures God took to help me find my way home, and the landscaping plan reminds me of the opportunity to share God’s love with others.
If you want to read more stories about the lost and found, check out Luke 15.
When was the last time you found something you previously lost? How did you celebrate when you found the missing item? Share your thoughts in the comments.
The Parable Of The Lost Blue Water Bottle
Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves.
Henry David Thoreau
I have a blue water bottle. It travels with me most places I go. From the looks of it, the blue water bottle isn’t anything special. I picked it up at Target several years ago for $5. It’s metal, and it has scratches and dents all over it. I’ve had to hammer out the bottom of the bottle several times, so it can stand up straight on a flat surface without wobbling.
I could easily replace the bottle, but I’m hoping it will stick with me for a while. It has value to me. It’s been to Guatemala three times so far. It reminds me of my times there, and it also reminds me to be thankful for the clean water I have at home. In some ways, I feel like I would be lost without my blue water bottle.
Friday night, I took my blue water bottle to Hannah’s graduation ceremony. I took a few sips of water throughout the evening, and I tucked the bottle under my chair to prevent others from tripping over it.
At the end of the ceremony, we stood up and moved into the sea of graduates in hopes of finding Hannah. When we found her, we embraced, celebrated, and preserved the occasion with pictures in the middle of the football field. Eventually, we exited the stadium and headed to our car and home weaving through the heavy foot and vehicle traffic along the way.
As we pulled into our driveway, I realized I had left my precious water bottle under my chair. I was crushed. I knew I couldn’t go back for the bottle that night as I didn’t want to sit in traffic for another hour while our family waited at home, so I did the only thing I knew how to do. I tried to move on.
Friday night, I tossed and turned in bed as I reflected on Hannah’s milestone, time with our extended family, the party coming up the next day, and my lost water bottle.
On Saturday morning, I woke up early to take care of a few things. Then, I drove back over to the high school in hopes of finding my water bottle. When I arrived there were a few people on the field stacking chairs and tearing down the stage. I was hopeful that my blue water bottle would be found. As I walked towards the chair I had been sitting in, I was saddened not to see any signs of my blue water bottle.
Next, I did the natural thing, and I started looking under all the other chairs. I walked towards the stage to see if anyone on the tear down crew had seen my prized possession. Luckily, one of the maintenance staff members (who thought I looked a little old to have just graduated) offered to help. He drove over to the grounds building at the side of the field, and we looked through the area to see if my bottle happened to make its way over there. No luck.
Then one of his team members rolled up in his gator. We asked if he had picked up a water bottle from the night before, and his response caused my heart to leap. He said, “You mean a blue water bottle?” Within minutes, I was reunited with my treasured, blue water bottle. I thanked both of the gentlemen and explained how much the bottle meant to me. They were glad to help.
As I brought my blue water bottle back into the house, I proclaimed “The lost has been found. All is right. My blue water bottle which was lost has now been found.” And we celebrated later that day with a big party under a tent in our backyard. Actually, the party was for Hannah’s graduation, but I think I celebrated a little bit more knowing my blue water bottle was safe and sound.
Every time I find something I previously lost, I am reminded to what lengths the Father went to find me. He sent His Son to pay the price for my sins and to make it possible for me to come home – safe and sound. I am blessed!
“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coin and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” Luke 15:8-10