Wait for the Father

Guest post by author C.A. Simonson

“The Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost…” (Luke 19:10)

Tim took his ten-year-old son into the woods with a hunting party. Their job, with several others, was to drive the woods or make lots of noise as they walked through to scare any deer toward the hunters waiting on the other side.

T. was placed several yards away but was told, “Keep your eye on that distant tree. That’s how you’ll know if you’re walking straight ahead, even if you can’t see me.” Tim was confident T. would stay on the right path if he kept the main tree as his goal.

Snow began to swirl, and the temperature dropped. Winds picked up and howled through the trees, making it impossible to hear any other shouts. Soon, the snow fell so hard, it was hard to see one another. When the drivers exited the woods on the other side, all were accounted for – except for young T.

“Have you seen T?” Tim questioned each one.

“I thought he was with you.” No one had seen him. Everyone assumed the boy had been with someone else. Although the blinding snow stung his face, there was only one thing to do – go look for his lost son. Almost impossible to see his own hand before his face, Tim would not give up. He went back into the woods.

After searching for almost an hour, he finally found a huddled-up little boy sitting on a log in the middle of the woods. Crying. Cold. Alone. Afraid.

“Why didn’t you keep walking straight ahead like I told you?” Tim asked.

“Because I couldn’t see you. I couldn’t see the tree. I couldn’t find the path. So I sat down and waited. You told me if I ever got lost to stay put, and you’d come find me.”

Tim’s heart melted. “I’m here now. Let’s go home.”

“Will you hold my hand, so I don’t get lost again?”

“I’ll always hold on to you, son, and be right beside you all the way.”

***

Life can sometimes be cold and immobilizing. We can’t think or see straight. Circumstances overwhelm and can overtake all sense of what’s right. Vision is blinded, and the path obscure. When we lose sight of the ‘tree,’ (the Cross), it’s easy to get side-tracked and lose our way.

Whenever this happens, it’s best to settle our souls and be still. When troubled, lost, or fearful, wait for the Father. Believe that He will find you – wherever you are. He’ll be there for you soon, and He will walk you Home – Every step of the Way.

“Remember, I am with you always – even unto the end of the world.” (Matthew 28:20)

C.A. (Candy) Simonson is a freelance writer and novelist. She began writing nonfiction articles in the 1980s with almost 800 articles published in multiple national or online magazines. Her award-winning stories are in seven anthologies, including Chicken Soup for the Soul. Her debut young adult novel, Love’s Journey Home, published in 2013 was followed by seven Christian YA novels and five nonfiction books. As a former IT computer trainer/teacher, she enjoys assisting other authors with book formatting, self-publishing, cover design, and sharing her technical and writing knowledge with writers’ groups. She serves the Springfield Writers’ Guild Board as the 2024 and 2025 President and SWG webmaster. See more at CASIMONSON.COM