There is an online Bible study that takes a topic and delves deeply into it. It is called Spirit and Life and this week it was about gathering the lambs. I have never gathered sheep myself, though I spend time every day gathering chickens.

It is a sweet experience, really, counting them, patting them, calling them by name, and noticing who is missing. Hermione and Hagrid are always the last to come when we call, and the twins and I go looking for them in their favorite spots. When a chicken knows you are about to pick her up, and running is futile, she hunches. She braces herself for the cuddle that is coming, and settles into your arms. I love it.

I remember how my father used to call me when I was out playing. The boundaries for our shenanigans were wide, reaching from the woods at the end of the road to the beginning of our one block cul de sac. He whistled. It only took one blast. We came. There was never any reason not to come. His reasons were always good, like dinner or a family outing. 

The speaker last night said that God whistles for us. I like that. Not like the shrill one Captain Von Trapp used in the Sound of Music, but an I'm Looking for You call. I want God to look for me because getting lost is kind of a habit for me. 

This weekend is a marriage conference. People will arrive and wander around the room getting coffee and looking over the agenda for the day. Some who have come before may feel at ease. Others are coming for the first time and will feel a bit lost. Who to sit with? What if my life's imperfections leak?