{"id":871,"date":"2021-01-24T01:04:42","date_gmt":"2021-01-24T01:04:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/?p=871"},"modified":"2025-11-24T14:16:33","modified_gmt":"2025-11-24T14:16:33","slug":"rescuing-our-loved-ones","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/?p=871","title":{"rendered":"Rescuing Our Loved Ones"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">I was recently in a class of 21 other older men, like me.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">The discussion leader asked, <em>\u201cHow many of you have a child or grandchild that has chosen a lifestyle that will compromise their health, happiness or financial stability?\u00a0 I am not talking about making a serious mistake or two, because we all do that.\u00a0 I am talking about loved ones who consciously choose a lifestyle that will have significant negative consequences, which they can\u2019t seem to see or do not want to see.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Every hand went up.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Because this gut-wrenching reality is nearly universal, I would like to share some hope.\u00a0 This is not my concept but it was taught by Jesus Christ, as recorded in the Bible.\u00a0 Whether Christian or not, the lesson is applicable for all those who want to help others who have lost their way.\u00a0 It is especially meaningful for those of us who have a family member or other loved one who is on the road to disaster.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">In Luke, chapter 15, those who were critical of Jesus pointed out that he chose to associate with the lost souls of his time.\u00a0 Jesus did not answer his critics directly but, instead, told three parables in succession.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\">He told three stories about something being lost because each parable addresses a different reason that a bad choice was made.\u00a0 Since bad choices lead to bad places, Jesus tells us how to rescue those who are lost.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline; font-size: 16pt;\">The lost sheep<\/span> \u2013 The shepherd goes in search of a lost sheep, finds it, puts it on his shoulders and brings it back to the flock.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Christ\u2019s teaching:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Go get them \u2013 The shepherd left the rest of the flock in order to find a sheep that had innocently wandered away. Many times our innocent loved ones are lured away by those who claim to be friends, or corrupting influences of a corrupting media, or just yielding to physical urges, without proper restraint. We need to actively and immediately go to these sheep and teach them the truth.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Carry them \u2013 Innocents have not yet learned how to see the consequences of their actions. They are easily misled and we must carry them with our strength, like the shepherd, until they can develop their own.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Do not be harsh \u2013 The shepherd did not beat the wandering sheep. When one is innocent, they are not choosing to rebel against what is right. They don\u2019t fully understand what is right.\u00a0 They do need to be corrected and taught and loved.\u00a0 Harshness will not bring them back.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Rejoice \u2013 Everything that an innocent does to improve should be celebrated. Both the shepherd and the sheep will be better for it.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol start=\"2\">\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline; font-size: 16pt;\">The lost coin<\/span> \u2013 A woman loses one of her ten gold coins, so she sweeps her house until she finds it.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Christ\u2019s teaching:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Act with a sense of urgency \u2013 The woman did not wait until the light was just right to search for the lost coin (lost soul). She lit a candle and began to sweep immediately<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Search \u2013 Since the coin did not lose itself, we must recover it because it will not come back on its own. The woman had not properly cared for the coin and, therefore, it was lost.\u00a0 We must accept responsibility for losing the coin, and for finding the coin. \u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Make it right \u2013 Many people feel guilty when a loved one goes astray. Usually that guilt is inappropriate and unproductive.\u00a0 In the case of the lost coin, guilt is proper and it motivates us to apologize for our actions that caused the coin to be lost.\u00a0 Then, we can retrieve the coin from its lost place. \u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Rejoice \u2013 When the lost coin (lost soul) accepts our apology and returns, we rejoice. However, because the coin was lost as a result of our actions, we must be very careful not to repeat the same mistakes.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol start=\"3\">\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline; font-size: 16pt;\">The lost (prodigal) son <\/span>\u2013 The son of a loving father takes his inheritance and wastes it in riotous living. He realizes his mistake and returns home to accept his father\u2019s will.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Christ\u2019s teaching:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Wait \u2013 The son in this story was not innocent (sheep) and was not the victim of the actions of another (coin). He knowingly chose to leave his loving family and the principles that he knew were correct in order to satisfy his ego and lusts.\u00a0 He was prodigal, which means wasteful.\u00a0 Jesus taught that we don\u2019t wring our hands and worry about making amends for being human.\u00a0 This son chose to turn his back on all that was good, so we wait until the son realizes that he was wrong and wants to do better.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Love \u2013 We must show unconditional love, like the father in this parable did, to even those who have wronged us and blamed us and taken advantage of us. We don\u2019t justify their bad behavior but we love them in spite of their behavior.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Teaching can wait \u2013 The father welcomed his son home with unconditional love and acceptance. The son will have many lessons to learn and re-learn, but lessons can wait until the celebrations are over.\u00a0 Preaching should be minimal and teaching should only be as often as the student is willing to learn.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">Rejoice \u2013 It goes without saying that parents are happiest when all of their children are safe within the fold.<\/span><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">We always rejoice when someone who is precious to us is found.\u00a0 Remember that none of these stories teaches using compulsion or trying to make another feel guilty.\u00a0\u00a0 Persuasiveness, patience, gentleness and love are the key elements in rescuing those who are lost.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;\"><a href=\"\/\/www.pinterest.com\/pin\/create\/button\/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.flickr.com%2Fphotos%2Fkentbrew%2F6851755809%2F&amp;media=http%3A%2F%2Ffarm8.staticflickr.com%2F7027%2F6851755809_df5b2051c9_z.jpg&amp;description=Next%20stop%3A%20Pinterest\" data-pin-do=\"buttonPin\" data-pin-config=\"above\"><img src=\"\/\/assets.pinterest.com\/images\/pidgets\/pinit_fg_en_rect_gray_20.png\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I was recently in a class of 21 other older men, like me.\u00a0 The discussion leader asked, \u201cHow many of you have a child or grandchild that has chosen a lifestyle that will compromise their health, happiness or financial stability?\u00a0 I am not talking about making a serious mistake or two, because we all do [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/871"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=871"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/871\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1720,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/871\/revisions\/1720"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=871"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=871"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=871"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}