A Heart That Cares for the Lost
Month 10: Telling the Good News · Heart Matters
Today's Scripture
Read together: Luke 15:3-7
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the pasture and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders, 6 comes home, and calls together his friends and neighbors to tell them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my lost sheep!’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous ones who do not need to repent.
Memory Verse
“How then can they call on the One in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!””— Romans 10:14-15 (BSB)
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: Isaiah 28-30
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time. (Around Day 295 of 365 — God promises grace to a people who keep wandering away.)The Heart of It
Jesus told a story about a shepherd with one hundred sheep. One sheep wandered off and got lost. The shepherd didn't shrug and say, "Well, I still have ninety-nine." He left the ninety-nine and went searching until he found the lost one. Then he carried it home on his shoulders, rejoicing. Jesus said heaven throws a party like that "over one sinner who repents" (). The point isn't really about sheep. It's about the heart of God. He doesn't see people who don't know Him as nameless strangers or hopeless cases. He sees them as lost ones worth searching for, and worth celebrating when they come home.
Telling the good news isn't mainly about memorizing arguments or winning debates. It starts in the heart. Before we ever speak, God wants to give us His feelings about people. He wants us to truly care about them. Think of the kid who sits alone at lunch. Think of the cousin who's never heard, or the neighbor who seems far from God. God wants them found and brought home. When your heart breaks a little for someone who is lost, that's God's own shepherd-heart growing inside you. And a heart that genuinely cares will find a way to speak. Not to look impressive or to be right, but because you'd love for them to know the Shepherd who came looking for you too.
Around the Table
The shepherd looked and looked until he found the one lost sheep. That's how much Jesus loves people who are far from Him!
Let's do it: Pretend to carry a lost lamb on your shoulders and say, "Found you! Welcome home!"
God doesn't think anyone is "not worth it." Every lost person matters to Him.
Let's talk: Who is someone you know who might feel far from God? How do you think He feels about them?
Caring about lost people is the heart behind sharing the gospel. Without it, our words can become cold or proud.
Let's go deeper: What's the difference between wanting to win an argument and wanting to win a person?
💬 Conversation Starter
Have you ever lost something you really loved and then found it? How did you feel? That's a tiny picture of how heaven feels when one lost person comes home to God.
🛡️ Defending the Faith
A good defense of the faith always rides on top of real love. People can tell the difference between someone trying to beat them and someone who genuinely cares about them. The "meekness" in isn't weakness. It's a heart so full of God's love that your answers come out gentle.
For Dad · Go Deeper
In apologetics-minded homes, it is dangerously easy to raise children who are right but not tender. They can spot a logical flaw at fifty paces, yet feel nothing for the person making it. is the corrective. The Father in these parables runs, searches, and celebrates. He is not aloof. If we want our kids to carry good news well, we have to model a heart that aches for the lost, not a scorecard. Let your children catch you praying by name for an unbelieving friend or co-worker. Let them hear you speak of people far from God with hope, not contempt. The mission flows from compassion. Protect the compassion first, and the courage to speak will follow.
Draws on: Tony Evans, Kingdom Disciples.
Let's Pray Together
"Father, give us Your heart for people who don't know You yet. Help us see them the way the shepherd saw the lost sheep. They are worth searching for, and worth loving. In Jesus' name, amen."
God has a shepherd's heart for the lost. And He's growing that same heart in me.