A few years ago, I did a teaching series at Finding Life for the month of December, called, “Found.”

As I was reading some of the messages from that series this morning, I was once again overwhelmed with a simple reality that screams off the pages of the Christmas Narrative.

Jesus came to find me.

The 7th gift I am re-discovering in the story of advent, is the gift of being FOUND.

From the time I was a little kid, until I moved out of my parents home, every Easter, my dad would create for my siblings and I, a hunt. A treasure hunt. Like any good treasure hunt, we began with a single clue that led us to the next clue, and the next, and then next, until we found the final clue that would lead us to the treasure. The treasure was always fun to find, but really what created a sense of excitement for this every year was the hunt itself.

It was always really challenging, so every year, as we got older, smarter, and more physically capable, the physical, mental and emotional challenge to find each clue became more demanding as well.

It was like a game of Chess.

We would spend hours and hours hunting, and the barriers to the treasure were real, and far from simple. I think my dad enjoyed watching us struggle. From hilltop hikes, to digging through restaurant pies to find our next clue,  there was virtually no limit to the hurdles we would find in our path.

The struggle was real.

But, the beauty was found in the struggle. The harder it was, the more gratifying the final uncovering of the treasure became.

The struggle made the entire thing worth it.

The story of Advent was the most epic treasure hunt that anyone has ever gone on.

The hunter in this scenario, was the God of the universe, and the treasure… well,

the treasure was…

YOU.

In this treasure hunt, the power was found in the barriers God blew through to find you, and the beauty was in the reality that the God of the universe sees you as a treasure worth hunting down.

Sit there for a moment… consider that…

You, are valuable enough to the creator of the starts, that He was willing to embark on a journey, a treasure hunt after your life, your freedom, your hope. He chose to come find you. This is true about every single human life. Bottom line… If the only thing God had to gain by coming to this earth, was your life, He would have done it a million times over. That is how valuable your life is to your creator.

What’s even crazier is that,

When He went looking, you weren’t asking to be found.
When He found you, you told Him to get lost.
When you told Him to get lost, He said,

Sorry, there is nothing you can do to keep me from coming after your heart, every day, for the rest of your life.

You are the treasure in the greatest treasure hunt anyone has ever embarked upon. That hunt began when Jesus entered the world as a tiny infant over 2,000 years ago, and it continues to this day.

Believe this…

Your God will not rest, until you are found.  In Him… healed and whole, forgiven, and free.

May the power of His pursuit, fill you with hope this Advent season.