France, 1999.

My sister and I went to visit our third sister who was volunteering a year in Le Chambon de Vorey to teach the children of missionaries.

The missionary and our sister picked us up in Paris and we immediately embarked on a whirlwind tour of the city before a two-day adventure-filled drive south to the Massif Central.

Many unique experiences provided memories to re-live and laugh over together in the ensuing years.

But God gave me something special.

Here I was in France experiencing a life-long dream, but in the middle of it my own heart was heavy with concern over someone I loved who was walking down the wrong path in life.

One afternoon we went for a walk along the Loire River, just outside the wall of the mission house. It was brisk, the walk was very long, but we warmed up as we walked and the view my sister had promised was spectacular.

Lagging behind on the walk back, thinking about and praying for my family on the other side of the world, especially that one, all of a sudden I looked up and nearby on the hillside appeared a lone sheep. Immediately and intensely, I felt the presence of God and His comfort and promise that he will leave the 99 and go and hunt for the one.

I've watched with undying thankfulness and joy as He has done it.

Every time I think of France, I'm reminded of the faithfulness of God to encourage a mother's heart and His promise never to forget one lost little sheep.

It's my most precious memory from any trip I've ever taken.

So Jesus told them this story: “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away! Luke 15:3-7