The Lost Sheep...
Good morning every one. I am so happy to welcome you all for today's Holy Mass, our special welcome to all our visitors and parishioners and every one here today. Let us thank God almighty for sending His Only Son the Good Shepherd to be with us for ever. Let us thank Him for showering upon us His countless blessings each and every day. Now let us take a moment to prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries of our Lord Jesus Christ...
Last last an amazing lady called me from Douro saying, "Father, I hope you are coming to our Douro doing and when you come, come with your clerical collar and you will get free meal". I was so shocked to hear that...With my clerical collar for a free meal.  Do you know how many years I spent to get this collar. I spent so many years studying philosophy and so many years studying theology and all the hard preparation to become a priest and  you say... come with your clerical collar for a free meal. Then I said, "Since you are saying its a free meal...ofcourse I am coming with my clerical collar".
Last week I called my mom and the line was so busy for two hours and I knew exactly who was talking to my mom. So later, I called my sister and said, "what were you talking to mom?". If she does not want to say she would usually say, "That is girls talk". And she wasn't happy for what I said.  I said, "Mom doesn't need girls talk all the time. She needs some intellectual talk too..."
Once a devout man lost his favourite bible as he was doing some outside job. But fortunately three weeks later, a sheep walked up to him carried the bible in its mouth. The man took the bible out of its mouth and looked up to heaven and exclaimed with a loud voice and said, "Its a miracle..". The sheep looked at him and said, "Not really. Your name is written inside the cover".
A man at the movie theatre notices what looks like a sheep sitting next to him. "Are you a sheep?" asked the man. "Yes, I am" said the sheep. The man asked, "What are you doing at the movie theatre?". The sheep said, "Because I liked the book so much".
Saint Luke's gospel chapter fifteen is called 'God's lost and found department'. They are the stories of the lost the sheep, the lost coin and the lost son or prodigal son.
Let us today meditate upon the 'lost sheep'. It's human to be lost and it's divine to find. It's human to go way from God and it's divine to get closer to man. The story began at the garden of Eden. As Adam and Eve went away from love, peace, harmony and prosperity and were hiding from God, something unexpected happened to them. God as they thought would go away from them, came to them searching. That is our God. He will never go away from us.  Searching, saving and shouting are the nature of the sacred heart of Christ our Lord.
Christ is the Lord who is searchig us constantly.  Once as a sheep went away from the fold wandering and not knowing the way back home. That was the time, the sheep saw that lone wolf who looked so busy. The wolf looked at the sheep and said, "you look lost...I know your family, your father and mother used to be my friends and unfortunately they were killed by some ferocious animals. I could take you back to your place but unfortunatly I am so busy. I am going to work. I have to work because people depend on me. My wife is sick and one of my children has down syndrome. They all need help. I don't have a good insurence and OHIP does not cover some of her medication either. But I feel so bad for you and I want to help you. One thing I could do, I will take you to my house first and stay there till the afternoon and then as I come back from work, I will lead you home. The lone wolf drew a perfect plan and the lost sheep accepted. As the lost sheep was following the lone wolf  the good shepherd came and rescued him. As the good shepherd was carrying the lost sheep on his shoulders, he noticed the lost sheep was still texting the lone wolf...so instead of getting mad at the lost sheep, He began to love him more. That is our Lord Jesus Christ who is in constant search of us. Though we fall into the same sin again and again, He never leaves us lone. His search and love continue.  It looks sometimes we find a way to escape from the shephed.
Once a priest announced in the church saying, "please turn off your cell phone and no text either...' and as he was doing the mass, someone's cell phone began to ring louder. Everybody was looking everywhere and then they found out that was Father's cell phone.
Once a BMW stops at a remote village and man with Armani suit, Gucci shoes and Ray Ban sunglasses gets out and looks at the shepherd and says, " "If I tell you exactly how many sheep you have in your flock, will you give me one?"
The Shepherd says, "Sure, why not". Then he with his GPS naviagation system using Nasa satelite scan the location, within the minute he says, "you have exactly thousand and twenty-four" sheep. That is right. Now you can pick up any sheep you want. The man picks up a one that looks so beautifyl. Then the shepherd says, "If I say what business you are doing, will you give me my animal back". The man says, "of course.." you are a consultant. how do you know that. Because you showed up yourself without invitation. You want to get paid for what I already know... now give my dog back.
Once the shepherd finds the lost sheep, there will always be celebration. After finding the sheep, he calls every one to celebrate. When the prodigal son came home, the dad invited everyone saying, "This son of mine was dead and now he is alive. This son of mine is lost and now he is found...Rejoice with me".
Every time we go to the Father using the sacrament of Reconciliation that is all we again and again hear that we are His and though we go away from him, He will find us and thus he will celebrate our reconciliaiton to Him, to others and ourselves.  The Lord is our shepherd and let us go to Him who leads us to green pastures and feeds us with life that will never end. Amen.