 An Encouraging Word - The Joy of Lost Things
November 2, 2025 (Author’s Note: I started a writing blog about ten years ago to write devotional thoughts and publish them. This one was written in 2018, so you will see references to my kids still living at home. A lot has changed since then. My children are all grown up and out in the world and time has marched on , as it always does. But the Good News in this devotional is still wonderful for today. MB ) When we moved into my grandparent's farmhouse about 8 years ago I found a cute little black teapot just big enough for about two cups of tea. We found it inside of a wall when we were remodeling the kitchen. It was full of little treasures. There were old coins from my grandfather's time overseas in the Navy, and my mother and her sister's little baby bracelets from the hospital, and some old pieces of mismatched jewelry. There was a coin stamped with the name of the coal mine and the miner number for my great-grandfather. The little teapot was stamped “Japan” on the bottom and was from the 1930’s. It was pretty neat to find all of these lost things hidden in the wall! I started keeping watch when I visited thrift shops and flea markets to see if I could find some more antique teapots from that era- probably 1920's-1940's. I would pick one up about once a year and display it on a shelf in my living room. I just enjoyed looking at them and the pretty designs. Last month, my little 4 year old nephew came over to visit for the day. He was showing off his Power Ranger kicks and accidentally knocked down the shelf off the wall. Naturally, there were some tea pots that were broken when this happened. We swept it all up and threw the shattered pieces away. Thankfully, we saved the lid to my grandmother's little black tea pot and I was able to glue it back together. Unfortunately, there was a beautiful jade colored tea pot that I could not find the lid for. I was really sad about this one because it was the first tea pot that I found in a thrift shop after I started looking for them. I guess you could say it was my thrifting aha! tea pot. Today we were cleaning the house. My son was cleaning the living room and moved the couch out to sweep and mop while I was on an errand in town. He called me and let me know that he had found the lid to my green tea pot under the couch and that it was unbroken! I was so excited to know that I could put that tea pot back together again- whole , perfect, and enjoy not only looking at it on the shelf, but using it soon to enjoy a cup or two of tea. I was thinking about that today. There is such joy in finding a lost thing. Sometimes it is something small, like a lid to a tea pot. Sometimes it is something unexpected- like finding a tea pot time capsule in the wall of your home. Other times it is something big- like finding your child when they get lost in the store, or locating your car keys when you are in a hurry in the morning. Whatever it is, there is a rush of pure joy when you find it. I don't know if you have ever thought about this...but we are all lost things at some point in our lives, and we dearly need to be found. May I share with you how I was found? When I was about 9 years old I went to church camp in northern Ohio at a Mennonite camp called Camp Luz. I don't remember a whole lot about that week, but I do remember that it was a pivotal point in my life, because it was there that I made the decision to become a believer. I remember praying and asking Jesus to come into my life. It was like someone was pouring pure joy into my heart. I knew right then that something in my life had changed. I experienced that pure joy again when I was a teenager and I asked God to help me have the courage and strength to put Him first in my life and to follow Him all of my days. I know that I'm not much of a person, and in the line up of humanity, I know that I am pretty insignificant. But, I do know that I was lost and then I was found. I believe that the angels in heaven rejoiced that day and that my Heavenly Father did too. I also don't think that we experience the wonderful gift of salvation and redemption so that we can just look good and sit on a shelf like a pretty tea pot or a collectible, like a Boyd's Bear with a tag that says "Christian , #1999". I believe that when God delivers our lives and redeems us that we are supposed to share that with others around us, serving them, caring for them, and sharing this great gift with them too. This world desperately needs to experience the life-changing joy of going from lost to found by the Savior. My friends, we live in a world where people are choosing to do whatever they think is right or wrong. They have no direction , sometimes no care for anyone except for themselves. While we have our children, our grandchildren, our school children in our influence, we have a short time to instill in them what is right and what is wrong. Think on what that Scripture from Romans says, "how can they hear unless someone tells them?". We need to share Christ with those around us. We can give them a wonderful HOPE in this life. Instead of trying to base their personal worth on their own accomplishments, looks, sports, clubs, academics, etc., we can point them to the One who can be their all in all. The only One who can fill the longing in our lives for redemption and acceptance. Share Christ with those around you! Please don't just be the "limited edition Christian " up on the display shelf. Be courageous! Be brave! Help those around you to experience the joy of being a lost thing that has been found by the Savior. It will change our world! Scriptures to Hide in Your Heart Today: Romans 10: 14-15 (New Living Translation) 14 But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? 15 And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!” Romans 10:9-10 (New International Version) “ If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” Ephesians 1:13-14 (New International Version) “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.” Luke 15: 3-10 (New International Version) “Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins 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.” Songs to Encourage You: Take It To Jesus (Anna Golden with Tasha Layton) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HY-QdAWMlxc&list=RDIu8t9D1SZys&index=2 Wonderful Counselor (Pat Barrett) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXQxt4gW61A&list=RDIu8t9D1SZys&index=23 Cry of the Broken (Darlene Zschech) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyG76_iIIWg&list=RDIu8t9D1SZys&index=24 Prince of Peace (Josh Baldwin) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfUSiAKnz0E&list=RDIu8t9D1SZys&index=27 If I Got Jesus (Ben Fuller) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p6lgcuZemY&list=RDIu8t9D1SZys&index=27 You Are Loved Beyond Measure! Melissa Boggs
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An Encouraging Word- What Are You Choosing to Eat Today? October 26, 2025 In the book Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the villain, Voldemort , decided as a young man attending Hogwarts School that he would do whatever it took to have power and control over people. He took people’s lives. He destroyed families. He destroyed even the friends that tried to reach out to him. Sounds similar to Satan in the Bible, huh? In the end all that was left of his soul was a whimpering disgusting withered shell of a child, dying . Unloved. Unwanted. Alone. Harry finally is able to see the pitiful wasted soul that Voldemort has become after their standoff at the end of the book. This evil figure that caused so much pain, destruction, and fear lay defeated and dying. This may seem like an unusual example to use, but I believe that J.K. Rowling’s description perfectly illustrates the condition of our souls without Christ. Let’s read an excerpt of this passage together. “He stood up, looking around. Was he in some great Room of Requirement? The longer he looked, the more there was to see. A great domed glass roof glittered high adobe him in sunlight. Perhaps it was a palace. All was hushed and still, except for those odd thumping and whimpering noises coming from somewhere close by in the midst… Harry turned slowly on the spot, and his surroundings seemed to invent themselves before his eyes. A wide-open space, bright and clean, a hall larger by far than the Great Hall, with that clear domed glass ceiling. It was quite empty. He was the only person there, except for- He recoiled. He had spotted the thing that was making the noises. It had the form of a small, naked child, curled on the ground, its skin raw and rough, flayed-looking, and it lay shuddering under a seat where it had been left, unwanted, stuffed out of sight, struggling for breath. He was afraid of it. Small and fragile and wounded though it was, he did not want to approach it. Nevertheless he drew slowly nearer, ready to jump back at any moment. Soon he stood near enough to touch it, yet he could not bring himself to do it. He felt like a coward. He ought to comfort it , but it repulsed him. “You cannot help.” He spun around. Albus Dumbledore was walking toward him, sprightly and upright, wearing sweeping robes of midnight blue. “Harry.” He spread his arms wide, and his hands were both whole and white and undamaged. “You wonderful boy. You brave, brave man. Let us walk.” Stunned, Harry followed as Dumbledore strode away from where the flayed child lay whimpering, leading him to two seats that Harry had not previously noticed, set some distance away under that high, sparkling ceiling. Dumbledore sat down in one of them, and Harry fell into the other, staring at his old headmaster’s face. Dumbledore’s long silver hair and beard, the piercingly blue eyes behind half-moon spectacles, the crooked nose: Everything as he had remembered it , and yet… “But you’re dead,” said Harry. “Oh yes”, said Dumbledore matter of factly. “Then….I’m dead too?” “Ah,” said Dumbledore, smiling still more broadly, “That is the question, isn’t it? On the whole, dear boy, I think not.” From: Rowling, J. K. (2007). Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. New York, NY :Arthur A. Levine Books. What did you have for lunch today? A hate filled sandwich? A carton of anger? A dish of sorrow? Unforgiveness with ranch dressing? A snack cake of pain? A juice box of fear? One evening, a Cherokee elder was teaching his grandson about life. “A fight is going on inside me,” he said to the boy. “It is a terrible fight, and it is between two wolves. This battle that goes on between the two wolves is inside us all. One wolf is Evil. He is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.” He continued, “The other is Good. He is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith.” The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf will win?” Wisely, the grandfather simply smiled and replied, “The one you feed.” There is a fight going on inside of each of our hearts and minds. Do you feel that restlessness in you? Do you feel the war for your affections, for your attention, for your minds? So I ask you the question today- What are you feeding your heart and mind? Are you feeding it life and truth or are you feeding it death and lies? I read a quote this week that said . “ We all eat lies when our hearts are hungry”. When we are starving , we will take whatever is given to us and we will consume it. Are you starving your heart and mind? Are you choosing to consume lies because your heart is hungry? Choose to feed it the truths of Scripture! Let the beautiful words of life found in the Bible become your sustenance! Scriptures to Hide in our Hearts: Living Water- John 4: 7-30 7A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8(For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) 9The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” 11The woman said to him, “Sir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock.” 13Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again.b The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.” 16Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” 17The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; 18for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.” 19The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. 20Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.” 21Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” 25The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.” 26Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am he.” 27Just then his disciples came back. They marveled that he was talking with a woman, but no one said, “What do you seek?” or, “Why are you talking with her?” 28So the woman left her water jar and went away into town and said to the people, 29“Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?” 30They went out of the town and were coming to him. Bread of Life- John 6:41-51 41So the Jews grumbled about him, because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” 43Jesus answered them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. 44No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. 45It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me-- 46not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God; he has seen the Father. 47Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48I am the bread of life. 49Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh. Psalm 34: 8 8Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! Songs to Encourage You: There is A Fountain (Filled With Love) (Shane and Shane) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXx558v5eik&list=RDgXx558v5eik&start_radio=1 Fill Me (River Valley Worship) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxnEFolX-Ns&list=RDTxnEFolX-Ns&start_radio=1 Is He Worthy? (Chris Tomlin) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkRiYsTN7KY&list=RDgXx558v5eik&index=2 Let me challenge you today to examine your heart , to examine your mind. Is your heart hungry? Is your mind hungry? What are you choosing to feed it? Are you choosing to eat lies instead of truth? The enemy will always feed us lies and we will never be satisfied. Christ will feed us with living water, the bread of life, and salvation. Choose wisely ! Praying for you this week! You are loved beyond measure!  |
AuthorMelissa Boggs is the Superintendent of Christian Life Academy and attends Good Shepherd Wesleyan Church. 
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