Our Most Valued

As was the custom when Jesus was growing up, he and his family traveled every year to Jerusalem to keep the feast of the passover. These occasions, which consisted of more than a day’s journey from Nazareth, then seven days in the city where the people assembled on the first and last day, must have been quite an experience. They traveled in groups which included family members and friends from the community.
On one of these trips, as told in Luke 2: 41-50, the feast had ended and the people had started the journey back home to Nazareth. Everyone was probably excited to be going home and, as people tend to do after such occasions, busy talking about the experience and sharing their joy with each other. I imagine the events went something like this….
Mary was busy chatting and, as mothers always do, trying her best to keep an eye on her kids ….Not easy, when in the company of many friends and family members. Getting the attention of her husband, Joseph, she asked if he had seen Jesus among the people. “No,” he looked around at the excitement. “I’m sure he’s here somewhere,” he told her. “He’s twelve years old, he’s surely with his friends somewhere.”
Mary agreed and they continued on.
As the day drew to a close and darkness fell, the people began to settle down and return to their family groups. Still there was no sign of Jesus. “Joseph,” Mary said, “I still have not seen Jesus anywhere. Do you suppose something has happened to him?”
Hearing the concern in her voice, Joseph again looked around. “Let’s ask if anyone has seen him.”
They spoke to each of the families and the answer was the same: No one had seen Jesus, or had any idea what had become of him.
Frantically, Mary and Joseph made arrangements for the other children to stay with family members and started the long journey back to Jerusalem.
Traveling at night was not easy. Tired and hungry, they stopped finally to rest, but found sleep to be impossible. Oh, Lord, Mary prayed silently, I have lost your Son, whom you left in my care. How can you ever forgive me?
Once in the city, they asked everyone if they had encountered a small, twelve-year-old boy….but no one had.
“Surely, by now,” Mary said, “he is scared and hungry….what if something terrible has happened to him?”
Joseph tried to console her while the same fears filled his own mind. They would keep looking. Jesus had to be somewhere in Jerusalem.
Three days were spent searching. Mary’s eyes were red and swollen from her tears, but she refused to give up. Then a thought struck her. “Joseph,” she said, putting her hand on his arm, as they were about to pass by the temple. “You don’t suppose….”
Joseph took her hand and they entered the temple together. Their hearts rose as they saw him there….sitting in the middle of a group of doctors, listening and asking them questions.
They hesitated for a moment, then Mary could stand it no more. “Son,” she said to Jesus, pushing her way passed the men to take him in her arms. “Why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been searching for you frantically!”
Jesus, embarrassed by the interruption, but glad to see his parents, looked at them and said, “How is it that you looked for me? Didn’t you know that I must be about my Father’s business?”
Mary didn’t quite understand what he meant at the time, but hid those words in her heart. “Well, right now, ” she told him, “you must come home with us to Nazareth. We’ll discuss your Father’s business later.” She hugged him again, her heart overflowing with the joy and relief of knowing he was unharmed.
Many parents today have experienced the heartache of having a child go missing. Many times, like in this case, the child is found safely and returned home, but too often this doesn’t happen. We live in a time when our children…. our most valued, are constantly being threatened with some kind of danger. Losing a child to sickness or an accident is terrible enough, but to have one disappear for days or even years and not knowing what has become of them and then to find their body in a ditch or a field is something no parent should have to suffer….but they sometimes do.
As parents we do all we can to keep our children safe and warn them to be careful when out of our sight.
When my son was almost five years old, we lived in a small town in Texas where nothing much ever happened, but due to several attempted kidnappings in surrounding areas, parents were advised to caution our children about never speaking to or taking anything from a stranger. My girls had heard the advice at school, but I talked to them all and felt they understood.
One day my son asked if he could go across the street and play with a friend. I agreed and like always reminded him to watch for cars…. then I stood in the door and watched, just in case. He got almost to the street, then came back and asked if I’d walk with him. “Why?” I asked. “Is something wrong?”
“I think there’s a stranger,” He pointed to a bulldozer sitting just down the street from where he would have to cross. “It’s in that thing,” he said.
I couldn’t tell for sure if anyone was in the machine or not. Curious, I asked him, “You do know for sure what a stranger is, don’t you?”
He nodded. “Yep, they have a big scary head and a long hairy arm and they grab little kids.”
I smiled and explained to him that a stranger is simply somebody we don’t know….and not all are bad. He still was not sure about crossing the street though, so I walked out with him so we both could see there was no one inside the bulldozer, then he happily ran across to play with his friend.
How exactly do we handle the responsibility of preparing our children to go out into the world without them being afraid? We make sure they know phone numbers, place their names on their underwear….whatever we can think of in case something happens. What though, can we do to make them feel safe, especially with all the dangers facing everyone these days?
The Bible says in Prov. 22:6 to “Train up a child in the way he should go and he will not depart from it.” One is never too young to hear about Jesus. I explained to my kids that even though they might be by themselves at times, they were never alone because Jesus was always there, watching over them. Hopefully this knowledge, and my prayers for their safety, calmed their fears and made life out in the world a little less scary.
Jesus always took an interest in the children. When the disciples tried to turn them away, He said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” Mat. 19:14  We cannot be careless or too careful, with the most valued people in our lives…. and who better to trust them to than the one who gave His life to save us all…and is always about His Father’s business