All We Like Sheep

I knew Wednesday was going to be a busy day. Mark was coming off of nightshift, so he'd be sleeping most of the morning, I had to run and pick up our Race for the Cure shirts, then I had to come back home, feed the kids lunch, put them down for their nap, and then head to the church to meet with some people. While trying to manage my time most efficiently, I put Eli in the jumperoo and turned on Sesame Street for Anna to watch so I could take a quick shower. I hurried as fast as I could, got out, and peeped my head into the living room to check on them. That's when I noticed the front door was wide open and Anna was missing. My heart sank. I ran into the bathroom, threw on my dirty pants and shirt (bypassing any underclothes) and ran outside in a panic to look for her. My initial sweep of the neighborhood found nothing. I looked up and down the street, in the neighbors' yards, and still no Anna. Panic turned to desperation as my mind went through 1000 scenarios. I ran back inside, shook Mark and yelled "Anna's missing." He immediately jumped straight up, threw clothes on, and ran outside with me to find our lost daughter. By this time, I was imagining having to call the police, wondering who might have taken her, or wondering what was so interesting that she wandered off to see, getting lost in the process. I scanned the neighborhood again. Nothing. I called out her name: "Anna. ANNA. ANNA!!" Nothing. I checked Mark's truck. Nothing. And then I checked the van. There sat my beautiful Anna, perfectly okay, putting on tons and tons of lip gloss. I was so relieved to see her that all I could do was hold her and cry.

Later that afternoon while I was at the church working, she escaped again. This time, she went to the neighbors house to play, where they feed her cookies and sprayed her with perfume.

When I got in from work, we made an emergency trip to Lowes to buy a chain lock for the door. It since has resolved the problem.

The next day I was thinking, how often do I do that with God? How many times do I run away from Him, for Him to be left heartbroken, wishing and hoping for my return? Just as much as my heart sank when I saw that front door open, God's heart sinks too when we wander from Him. This verse came to my mind:

All we like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way. ~~Isaiah 53:6

Are you wandering?