The Little Sheep Is Found

People gathered around Jesus to listen. He welcomed them and told stories that helped them understand God’s love. One of these stories was about a shepherd and a sheep.

Jesus invited his listeners to imagine a shepherd with a hundred sheep. A hundred! That was a large flock, full of soft wool, little hooves and busy noses.

Each sheep mattered to the shepherd. If one went missing, would he simply forget it because he still had so many others?

Listen to what happens in the parable. In our pictures, we show just a few sheep from that big flock. The story begins on the hills where they grazed.

The sheep were grazing in the open country. The shepherd looked over his flock, but one sheep was missing. There were ninety-nine together, and one somewhere else.

Ninety-nine was still a great many sheep. But the missing one mattered too. The shepherd did not shrug his shoulders and decide that one less was good enough.

He left the ninety-nine in the grazing country and went to look for the one he had lost. He would search until he found it.

Imagine him looking along the paths between the hills. Where had the little sheep gone? He took his crook and began his search.

The parable does not tell us exactly how the sheep became lost. In our retelling, we imagine it stopping beside a patch of tender grass and wandering beyond the familiar path.

When it looked up, the other sheep were nowhere to be seen. There were rounded rocks, a leafy bush and hills stretching into the distance.

The little sheep gave a soft bleat. It listened, but there was no answering sound from the flock. The familiar company was missing.

It stayed near the bush, looking back along the path. The sheep did not know it yet, but someone was already looking for it.

The shepherd kept going. He walked past an olive tree and followed a path between the stones, stopping now and then to listen.

A breeze rustled the leaves. His sandals brushed the ground. He looked carefully, because a small sheep could be hard to spot among the bushes.

The first place he checked was empty. That did not mean his search was over. In Jesus’ story, he keeps searching until the lost sheep is found.

Then he noticed a little shape beside a bush. Was that a curl of wool? He moved closer, and there was the sheep!

What a happy moment! The shepherd had found the sheep he was looking for. The long search ended with joy.

He knelt beside it and held out his hands. The little sheep looked up at his familiar face. It was no longer alone.

Then, just as Jesus tells in the parable, the shepherd lifts the sheep onto his shoulders. He carries it gladly as he sets off for home.

Picture the little hooves resting beside his chest and the soft wool near his head. The way back is a journey they make together.

When the shepherd arrived home, he called his friends and neighbors together. He wanted them to share his happiness: the sheep that had been lost was found!

The neighbors smiled and the children gathered close. The shepherd did not keep the good news to himself. His joy became their joy too.

Jesus explained the meaning of the parable: there is joy in heaven when a person repents. To repent means recognizing a wrong choice and turning back toward God.

The shepherd’s search helps us picture care that does not give up. And the happy homecoming reminds us that forgiveness and a new beginning are reasons to rejoice.