SUPPORTING SCRIPTURE

Matthew 18:12โ€“13

Reading the Bible is an important part of how we can grow in our faith, but we know many people question why the Bible is not relevant for today. With its old language and confusing references, it can feel irrelevant or disconnected. But these Scripture meditations are meant to help us bridge that disconnect, and encounter reasons why the Bible is relevant.

 

God Pursues Us

Does God pursue us? Yep, God pursues us, you betcha.ย 

Does God ever stop pursuing us? Nope, not a chance.ย 

You know when kids have that special toy, stuffed animal, action figure, etc.? And when itโ€™s missing, everyone in the vicinity is thrown into the โ€œdrop everything and searchโ€ drama until itโ€™s located? It absolutely needs to be found. God pursues us in that โ€œdrop everything and searchโ€ kind of way.

He comes looking for us when we are lost and wandering like we are the single most important thing to him. And he is incredibly excited when we do come back to him.ย 

Dive into this Scripture meditation below and know that God will never stop searching!

Matthew 18:12โ€“13

12 โ€œWhat do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off?ย 

13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off.โ€

Observations from the Text

  • God pursues us even when we wander (v.12)
  • God notices when we are lost (v.12)
  • God rejoices when we are back in his family (v.13)

Prayers of Response

Father, when it comes to _________, it feels like you have forgotten me.

Lord, Iโ€™m so grateful that you brought me back to you even when _________.ย 

Prayer Requests

God, I pray that you remind _________ (name) of how happy you are that theyโ€™ve come back to you.

Lord, please donโ€™t stop searching for _________ (name)โ€”they are lost and need you more than ever.

Prayers of Readiness

Father, I will choose to partner with you in loving and pursuing _________ (name), even as they wander from a relationship with you.ย ย 

God, I need to trust that you wonโ€™t give up on _________.

 

We believe simple Scripture meditations like this help us in our mission to creatively explore how we connect with God in the ordinary, extraordinary, everyday moments of life. For more Scripture meditations, visit this page!

Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Versionยฎ, NIVยฎ. Copyright ยฉ 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.โ„ข Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The โ€œNIVโ€ and โ€œNew International Versionโ€ are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.โ„ข