Lost And Found
By Pastor Phillip Rutledge
If I had the answer to all your problems and didn’t tell you, you probably wouldn’t call me “friend”? If I had been down the road you’re on, suffered similar losses and never told you how I got out of those situations, you likely wouldn’t speak to me again. I don’t blame you.
But I tell you the truth; “there is nothing new under the sun”. There have been people down the same road as you. I might be one of them. And they have found the answer and proclaim the same message. They call themselves Christian – Followers of Christ.
It doesn’t matter if you are male or female, whether you are 13 or 113, the message is the same. John 3:16 (ESV) “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
Satan (yes, he is very real), would like you to believe that this god stuff is no longer relevant in today’s culture – but to hell with him. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
Although I am into the latter half of my life now, I was a kid once, too. I grew up in a typical family setting and followed my parents to church every Sunday. I sat through some ho-hum Sunday school classes but there were also some times when we’d break out of the norm and do “fun stuff”. Thinking back, I wished we did more fun stuff.
Luke 19:10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
At age 12 or 14 my brother and I did our best to sleep in, thereby annoying our parents until they finally gave up dragging us to church. We were free at last – or so I thought.
At age 20 I left the family nest and came to Windsor in search of new adventures. Life was great for a time but eventually I began to feel something was missing in my life. It’s difficult to describe my feelings but deep inside I knew where I would find the answer – at church.
So my search for a church began. I knew in part what I was looking for – peace. My first attempt at finding a church lead me to one that had the same name as the church I grew up in. Let’s just say it didn’t go well and that turned me off for quite some time.
Then by the grace of God, I met a young lady and fell in love. We began to attend her church. From the moment I sat down in her church, I felt I was “at home”; I found the peace I was searching for. It had nothing to do with the building. It had everything to do with the presence of God. My life has never been the same since.
So my friend, I pray with every fibre of my soul; listen to words of Jesus: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” – S.D.G.