It was only 10 a.m. but I was already getting tired. Carrying boxes out of cars into the Salisbury Country Club for the eighth annual Precious in His Eyes celebration and fundraiser was tiring, especially on an empty stomach. Family members Joe, Jon, Kandee, Kaity, Stephanie, Jeff, and Lauren began to arrive to set up equipment. They were to provide musical entertainment for the event. Whew! I had no idea how much was involved in setting up sound and musical equipment for a band!

It was now 1:30 and the first guests arrived. Thoughts of the first annual event eight years earlier floated through my mind when 50 people thrilled our souls! Today we were challenged to get enough tables and chairs in place for over 160 to have a seat. What a wonderful problem!

And then it began!  Fatigue lifted and my heart rejoiced as the Luckadoos led in joyful worship and celebration. Two Capstone residents—Sophia and Erin–and one graduate gave powerful testimonies of their time at Capstone.

The graduate, Susan, shared a touching story of how she had arrived at Capstone a broken vessel and arose from the rubble a strong, confident woman established and grounded in the love of Jesus Christ.  Thanks to the healing power of the Savior and the loving hands of Capstone staff and volunteers, she had left her addiction in the past, returned to her career as a nurse and regained custody of her children. An active member of Trading Ford Baptist Church and its Celebrate Recovery ministry, she serves as a leader in the children’s ministry. Her beautiful smile and good humor make her a joy to be around.

As she concluded her remarks, her daughter, Amariah, took the stage to dance to Kim Walker-Smith’s Throne Room. What a lovely sight as I watched the graceful young girl and the music merge into one. Thank the Lord!  Another precious family had been restored!

Finally, my son Jeff sang and the Capstone Diamonds—seven residents of the recovery center—danced to the song, Thank You, a moving tribute to donors who make Capstone possible. Few eyes were dry as they concluded their thanksgiving offering. (You may want to check them out on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiJRts3kSXg.)

Everyone then moved to an adjacent dining room for birthday cake and a silent auction. The first thing I saw as I entered the huge double doors was a stunning picture of Jesus as he rescued a wayward lamb. Tears again pooled in my eyes as I studied the painting. “How appropriate for this fundraiser,” I thought, “for these women who come to Capstone are indeed ‘lost sheep’ in need of a Savior!”

The words of  Scripture flooded my thoughts:

^“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 NLT)

Yes, Capstone is a home for lost sheep—a home where wayward ewes can meet the Good Shepherd and grow strong in his presence before joining the safety of the flock and his caring oversight. It is a place where families are restored. Since most of the women who come to Capstone have children who are in foster care or temporary custody of relatives and friends, it is a place where mothers and children are reunited.

C. C. Miller wrote a powerful, poignant poem based on the parable. It helps explain the importance of recovery centers, both for parents and their children.

“Twas a sheep not a lamb that strayed away
In the parable Jesus told,
A grown-up sheep that strayed away
From the ninety and nine in the fold.

And why for the sheep should we seek
And earnestly hope and pray?
Because there is danger when sheep go wrong;
They lead the lambs astray.

Lambs will follow the sheep, you know,
Wherever the sheep may stray.
When sheep go wrong, it won’t take long
Til the lambs are as wrong as they.

And so with the sheep we earnestly plead
For the sake of the lambs today,
For when sheep are lost, what a terrible cost
The lambs will have to pay!”

Capstone is about leaving a legacy of saved parents, saved children, and saved future generations.

There is a wonderful old hymn written by Elizabeth Claphane and performed by Guy Penrod and the Gaithers that tells the story in song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NbHZjlnWos Check it out. It’s powerful.

There were ninety and nine that safely lay
in the shelter of the fold,
but one was out on the hills away,
far off from the gates of gold,
away on the mountains wild and bare,
away from the tender Shepherd’s care,
away from the tender Shepherd’s care.

“Lord, thou hast here thy ninety and nine:
are they not enough for thee?”
But the Shepherd made answer, “This of mine
has wandered away from me,
and although the road be rough and steep,
I go to the desert to find my sheep;
I go to the desert to find my sheep.”

But none of the ransomed ever knew
how deep were the waters crossed,
nor how dark was the night the Lord passed through,
ere he found his sheep that was lost.
Out in the desert he heard its cry,
sick and helpless and ready to die,
sick and helpless and ready to die.

And all through the mountains, thunder riven,
and up from the rocky steep,
there arose a cry to the gate of heaven,
“Rejoice, I have found my sheep.”
And the angels echoed around the throne,
“Rejoice, for the Lord brings back his own;
rejoice, for the Lord brings back his own.”

As I left the Country Club about 5 p.m., I was no longer tired. My heart and soul overflowed with gratitude as I reflected on the day’s celebration and the numerous women who have passed through Capstone’s doors to go on to live productive lives. When I carefully carried the portrait of the Savior rescuing the lost sheep to my car, I was reminded again of why we do what we do. As volunteers, we provide hands and feet for Jesus to use in reaching down for the lost sheep who are caught up in addiction and can’t save themselves.

Challenge: What about you? Are you a part of a ministry where lives are saved and transformed? If so, praise the Lord! Thank you for your service. If you are not involved in ministry and would like to help Capstone Recovery Center, please contact Miriam Ramirez, Executive Director, at Capstone Recovery Center. http://www.capstonerecoverycenter.org/  Your donations and service would be greatly appreciated.