Mother and Peggy had gone downtown to shop together one Saturday afternoon. They were in one of the big stores when Peggy began to coax:
“Please, Mother, let’s go and see the toys!”
So they made their way through the busy store and into the elevator. Soon they stepped out right into the most wonderful display. An electric train with real lights and a noisy whistle was speeding along through tunnels and under little bridges. In another corner were all the lovely dolls; and then there were games and things to play house with! Peggy felt that she would like to stay there all day just looking at everything. She wandered from one thing to another having such a good time!
Then she saw a beautiful dollhouse that looked almost real enough to live in. After peeking in a window here and there she called her mother to come and see too.
“Oh, look, Mother, isn’t this nice?”
Mother didn’t answer so Peggy looked quickly around, but she couldn’t see Mother.
There were many people all around her so perhaps Mother was nearby in the crowd. Peggy called a bit louder, “Mother, Mother.”
In a few moments she grew frightened and wanted to cry. “Mother, where are you?”
She was lost! What should she do? She sat down on a toy chair and cried and cried. Even the nicest doll couldn’t interest her any more—she was lost!
Suddenly she thought she heard a familiar voice. She stopped crying to listen.
“Peggy, Peggy!”
“Here I am, Mother! I’m so glad you found me—I was lost and so frightened.”
But she didn’t have time to say much more for Mother had been frightened too, and now she was hugging Peggy so tightly in her arms!
Do you know that Peggy was lost before she knew it? Yes, she was! But at first she wasn’t frightened for she was having such a good time and she hadn’t discovered that she was all alone until she looked around for her mother.
Boys and girls, some of you are lost—and perhaps you don’t know it. You are happy and are having a good time, but you are lost in sin and far, far away from God. But God is watching you, and He wants to welcome you into His arms.
“For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10.
“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way: and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 53:6.
ML 08/13/1950