Not One Lost

December 09, 2025 Tuesday of the Second Week of Advent 
Daily Readings: Isaiah 40:1-11; Matthew 18:12-14
 

Children of God: During the 16th century, the early Jesuit missionaries to China faced great challenges in spreading the Gospel. Missionaries like Matteo Ricci spent years learning the Chinese language, studying its culture, and living among the people. For a long time, they had no mass conversions, no grand churches, no large crowds. But they were not discouraged. They sought one person at a time — one heart willing to listen, one soul ready to believe. They knew that every single person mattered to God.

Jesus, in the parable of the lost sheep, said: “If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray?” (Matthew 18:12). This story reveals the heart of God: a shepherd who does not give up, who seeks the lost until they are found. While others might consider one lost sheep unimportant, Jesus shows that no one is too small or too far for His mercy.

The early Jesuits understood this truth. They mirrored the patience and compassion of the Good Shepherd by valuing even one conversion, one encounter with Christ. In our time, the same call is given to us: to care for the lost, the forgotten, and the struggling. Sometimes the “lost sheep” are not far away — they are within our families, our schools, or our workplaces. They may be people who have drifted from faith, who carry deep wounds, or who feel unworthy of God’s love.

To be a true follower of Christ means sharing in His mission to seek and save the lost. This does not always mean preaching with words; sometimes, it is about listening, forgiving, or showing kindness when no one else will. Like the Jesuits in China and the shepherd in the Gospel, we must have hearts that refuse to give up on anyone. For when we help bring one lost soul back to God, all of heaven rejoices.

Children of God: The Gospel reminds us that each of us is precious in God’s eyes. There is no distance too great, no sin too deep, no heart too lost that the Shepherd will not seek. Let us allow ourselves to be found by Him — and in turn, help others find their way back to His loving arms.