October 2024
“The Lost Puzzle Piece”
“Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not have 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.” (Luke 15:4-6a)
Have you ever lost something and struggled to find it? We often lose or misplace important possessions, such as a purse, ID card, credit card, cell phone, or even the TV remote control. When you find them, you feel so happy.
A few months ago, I received a gift: a puzzle called ‘Jesus and Sheep.’ I don’t usually do puzzles because I thought they took up too much time. So, I looked at the puzzle and hesitated to start assembling it. I took the puzzle pieces out and put them back into the box several times. Finally, I decided to start assembling them. Every time I found the next piece, I felt excited, like finding a treasure. While assembling the puzzle, if I couldn’t find the next piece, doubts would come to mind: ‘Maybe that piece doesn’t exist. The one I need might be missing. Perhaps the creator left it out.’ I continued to find each piece, alternating between joy and suspicion.
Finally, when I was almost done, I realized that one piece was missing. I felt disappointed and thought, ‘See, I knew it. The creator must have missed it. There’s no way to complete this puzzle.’ I didn’t feel good because I couldn’t finish it. I tried to find the last piece, but it seemed unimportant in the overall puzzle. It wasn’t a part of Jesus or the sheep, just a small section near the edge by Jesus’ right elbow. However, without that piece, the puzzle couldn’t be completed. Disappointed, I looked at the puzzle and decided to make a piece myself to replace it. But nothing could truly replace the missing puzzle piece.
I left the incomplete puzzle on my table for several days and searched for the missing piece everywhere—under the table, in the bedroom, study room, and even the bathroom. Finally, I found it under the table, hidden by the carpet and one of the table legs. I was almost in tears; it was such an emotional moment. Wow, it led me to a moment of inspiration.
Suddenly, a scripture passage came to mind: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not 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.” (Luke 15:4-6a) In fact, I had unresolved doubts about this passage: Why did the shepherd leave the ninety-nine sheep outside? Wasn’t he exposing the other sheep to danger just to find one lost sheep? Was that one sheep more precious than the ninety-nine? Why was the value of the one lost sheep so great to him.
Although I can’t compare a puzzle piece with a sheep, I feel like I can understand the shepherd through this lost puzzle piece. It’s not that the ninety-nine sheep weren’t precious to him—they were equally precious. The ninety-nine sheep had the company of one another, but the one lost sheep had no one, which is why the shepherd hurried to find it. If he couldn’t find the lost sheep, he couldn’t close the gate to his pasture that night. If so, the remaining ninety-nine sheep would indeed be exposed to danger. Just as a puzzle cannot be complete without a single piece, the lost sheep is essential to the shepherd.
Likewise, we are each one of God’s hundred sheep. Are you wandering alone, away from the ninety-nine, which represents the faith community? Or perhaps, do you know someone dear to you who is wandering away from the community, but you haven’t gone after them? Until that lost sheep is found, the gates of heaven will not close. Until that lost sheep is found, all of us may be exposed to danger. Now is the time for all of us to go together and seek the lost sheep. Just as every puzzle piece is precious, you are so precious to our church community, to God, and to the kingdom of God. Come and join us in finding our loved ones!
Blessings!
Pastor Jenny