Six-week-old Crystal Guerrero was kidnapped on December 16, 1993, from a Chicago health clinic. Her parents lived in emotional turmoil for a week, unable to eat or sleep.

Then an abandoned baby was found in a church. It was Crystal! She was unharmed and well. Imagine the family's joy, a joy shared by the whole country as the media spread the heartwarming news. The infant was back in her mother's arms just in time for a jubilant Christmas.

How does God feel about those who are lost? In Luke 15, Jesus told the parable of the shepherd who left his flock of 99 sheep and went out into the desert to search for one that was lost. He also told about a father who waited and watched with anguished heart praying for the return of his prodigal son.

Those stories reveal the heart of the heavenly Father. Indeed, God was so burdened for the lost human race that He made the costliest sacrifice He could make. He sent His Son into the world to die on the cross so that He could save lost sinners. And Jesus said that whenever a sin-abducted soul is found and restored to the Father's family, "there is joy in the presence of the angels of God" (Lk. 15:10).

Have you made heaven rejoice?  — Vernon C. Grounds