I have these beautiful handmade glass stud earrings that are a deep plum with flecks of crackled gold in them that I purchased in a small boutique in Venice, Italy. After 45 minutes of scouring all the unique handmade glass earrings and small talk with the shop owner, I found the perfect pair of earrings that begged me to purchase them and give them a new home. It was a perfect and one of a kind find. Out of all the distinctive earrings in the boutique, I found the most beautiful pair and I could not wait to bring my treasure home and proudly wear them.

I keep the earrings stored safely in the same box that I bought them in as a fond reminder of an epic Europe adventure. When I wear them, I tuck my long hair behind my ear, so that any passerby can pay notice to its gold glint and admire its maker’s handiwork. Needless to say, I love these earrings.

In going home for the holidays, I carefully packed the earring box in my jewelry bag where it was safe and sound. The earrings were ready to help my attire celebrate the holidays! I took the earrings out of their home and wore them to one of my best friends’ Mom’s house for a gingerbread house making competition. The earrings accompanied me through a night of eating sugary treats and competitive house making spirits. Excellent gingerbread house engineering and a creative pretzel log cabin exterior design helped my team win the competition by the way!

I got home late from the evening, exhausted and tired from the festivities, so I got ready for bed and crawled comfortably into my covers and fell fast asleep. The next morning as I began to wake up, I immediately realized that I had betrayed my treasure. I was more concerned about going to sleep that I neglected to take out my beautiful glass stud earrings. As my hand went to my ears, I felt only one stud in my ear feeling cold and alone from its companion. My heart raced as I started to tear back the sheets and folds of the bed to try to find my lost earring. Without luck, I started to tear apart my entire room starting the search and rescue mission. Shaking out the rugs on either side of the bed, nothing fell loose. Next I grabbed a flashlight and started looking underneath the bed, behind the bed, in front of the bed, and around the night stands. Still no luck. My heart sank as I realized my prized possession was now gone and never again would I be able to display my unique find to commemorate my Venice trip.

Thinking back on the evening, I thought it could be anywhere. I don’t remember any point that I wasn’t wearing it, so I had no clue as to where and when it had fallen out. For all I knew, it could be on the floor at my friend’s Mom’s house, laying broken in the street, or shoved in a crack somewhere all alone. My heart grieved at being separated from the loss of my earring. I even called my friend and asked her to have her Mom search her house to see if it fell off there.

A few days had passed and I had given into the idea that I would never get my earring back to complete the pair. I called the search and rescue mission off, and lost hope. I was sad, but reminded myself that it was just a thing and that I shouldn’t be wrapped up in possessions…but they were from Venice, one of a kind, and I felt like they were meant to spend the rest of our lives together.

My holiday vacation was coming to an end. The day before I was going to drive back home to go back to work, I decided to deep clean my car. I needed to wipe down the leather interior and vacuum the floors. I was working through the driver’s and front passenger seat, vacuuming, shaking the floor mats, and wiping down the seats. I moved to the backseat to continue this routine, and as I lifted up the floor mat behind the driver’s seat, there it was…my earring! It had fallen out in my car on the drive home and it was sitting under the floor mat. I was so grateful that something inside me prompted me to clean my car at that moment because if I didn’t decide to clean it then who knows what would have happened to the earring. It could have been broken or kicked outside from passengers getting in and out of the car. But there it was safe and sound, and with me the whole time just hidden. I gingerly picked it back up swearing to be more careful the next time I wore them. I put it back with its counterpart safely in the box and exhaled a sigh of relief. I even threw out a “Praise the Lord! Thank you God!”

In that moment, I realized that this feeling of relief, celebration, and joy must be how God reacts when His lost ones are found. When his children who have been lost, broken, or hidden from his face come back into His presence, there is great celebration, praise, thanksgiving, and joy! It reminds me that God is always looking for us and will never give up on seeking us out because He desires to be in relationship with us. We are His beautiful creation that He uniquely created as “one of a kinds” and He is proud to display His handiwork as we are used for His glory.

These are just a pair of earrings, and I felt pure joy over finding the lost stud that I valued so much and I cannot fathom how much greater this joy is that God experiences when sinners repent and the lost are found! They are so precious and loved by Him. I am so thankful that God does not lose hope or call off His search and rescue missions on us. He is constantly seeking our hearts to pick us up out of the deepest, darkest places because He desires so much to have a relationship with those that are separated from Him. Those moments when we are hiding from God, feel lost, or broken, the search and rescue mission is well under way and God is scouring heaven and earth to find us, provide direction and make us whole again.

The Parable of the Lost Coin

“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.” Luke 15:8-10