THE NEW EWE

"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'"

Luke 15:4-6

March 26, 2025

LIFE IN THE FOLD

A few days ago, I took two of my nephew's kids out for lunch. When we got to the restaurant, I was helping my 6-year old niece out of the backseat. I happened to look over and noticed writing on the inside of my car door.

I asked, "Did you write on my car door?" She admitted that yes, she had. I asked her, "Why would you do that?!" Her response was, "Well, you didn't tell me not to!" I didn't even know that there was a crayon anywhere in my car for her to write with, so had no idea that I needed to tell her not to write on my car. I didn't know that it would even have been necessary to tell her that. But she was right! I had never told her not to write on my car doors. I keep carseats for both of the younger kids in my nephew's garage, so they're available if needed. I'm guessing that perhaps the crayon was in the carseat and she had found it.

To be honest, I did tell her not to ever do that again, but I did think it was kind of cute. It's still there! I'll clean it off whenever I get ready to sell the car, whenever that may be.

I wasn't exactly sure what she had written, so asked. She said, "I wrote, 'I love you.'" After she told me, I could see that's what it said.

Her response reminded me of how we respond to God at times. We sin, mess up, do stupid things, act without thought.... sometimes act with thought, make wrong choices, etc. God may ask, "Why did you do that?!" Our response is along the lines of, "Well, you didn't tell me not to!"

I'm sure there are times when God shakes His head and thinks, "Have you never read my word?! How long have you known Me? I didn't know it was necessary to specifically tell you not to do that, because you should have known better."

The main difference is, I didn't see my niece writing on my car and had no idea what she was doing until after the fact. God sees and knows all, so there is nothing that we can do in secret or hide from Him.

Hebrews 4:13 says, "Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account."

The previous verse talks about how alive and powerful the word of God is. It says that it exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.

In Numbers chapter 32, Moses is speaking to the men of the tribes of Gad and Reuben. He gives instructions, then ends by saying, "If you fail to keep your word, then you will have sinned against the Lord, and you may be sure that your sin will find you out."

We can never be sneaky enough, clever enough, wise or smart enough to ever hide our thoughts and actions from God. There will never be a good enough excuse or justification for disobeying God or going against what we know is right. God will always see and know and nothing is secret from Him.

There are verses in Psalms 139 that can either bring comfort or cause conviction. They can either give peace or bring despair. The difference comes from whether or not we are in a right relationship with the Lord. Whether the knowledge that He is always with us and we are never out of His sight brings assurance or fear, is dependent on whether or not we're trying to hide from Him or desire His constant presence.

Verses 7-12 says, "I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night -- but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same to you."

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

God also watched over King David, when he showed his weaknesses and while he was sinning. But He still called David a man after His (God's) own heart.

The truth is, people sin. Even when we've accepted Jesus into our hearts and lives, we still make mistakes. God sees those mistakes, but He also sees our repentance and desire to go back to Him. He knows our love for Him and our desire to please Him.

Even though He sees it all, it is still good to speak to Him, and tell Him how much we love Him and appreciate all He does for us. I believe He enjoys it, and I know I benefit from speaking it, too.

ON THE MENEWE:

Quiche

Fry onions in the butter over medium-low heat for approximately 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are deep golden brown. Set aside to cool.

Fry the bacon until chewy. Chop into bite-sized pieces; set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 400.

Roll out the pie crust and press into a large fluted deep tart pan or any kind of deep dish pie pan.

Whip the eggs, cream, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Mix in the onions, bacon and cheese. Pour the mixture into the pie crust.

Place the pan on a rimmed baking sheet and cover lightly with aluminum foil.

Bake for approximately 40-45 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking for 10-15 minutes.

Remove from oven and allow to sit for about 10 minutes.

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

Jon and I received a puzzle for Christmas. That has started us on a journey of putting puzzles together. We've pretty much had a puzzle going since that time. We keep a card table in the living room and work on a puzzle while watching TV in the evenings or one (or both) of us will sit and work on it whenever we have some spare time. We have both thoroughly enjoyed this. We recently found a really fun mystery themed puzzle to put together. It was challenging, but not horribly difficult, and we loved it! It was different than the norm. You can look up mystery jigsaw puzzles online and find them. We liked it so much, that I ordered more as soon as we finished.

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

Waiting is not wasted time in God's eyes.

It is a season of preparation, renewal, and trust. - TobyMac

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org