More From Leigh Mackenzie

Little did I know that when my devotion would be printed by The Upper Room, people all over the world would be experiencing travel bans, closed borders, and not being allowed to walk outside of their homes! Nevertheless, it is my honor to have been given a little spot in what I consider the gold standard of Christian devotionals—one I remember reading even before I was a Christian.

“Never Lost” was written around events surrounding the first mission trip we took to Ethiopia back in 2009. We had adopted our daughter, Yemariamwerk (now Isabella), just a year earlier, before the Lord pressed it onto our hearts to return to help her countrymen. Our six-year-old son, Julian, took the lead on fundraising for his baby sister’s “Ethiopian family” by creating a charitable group and speaking at local schools and universities to raise awareness for the plight of Ethiopian orphans. Armed with $35,000 (yes, we really raised that much!), nine tubs of donations, and a solid, praying team later, we found ourselves on a plane flying across the world. Our hearts were set on finding worthy, locally-run Christian agencies that we could support with these funds and goods for schools and children.

Seven of us walked through the famed Mercato—overstimulated by the sights, sounds, and smells—when my little boy slipped away from my grip. Julian was always quick, running everywhere he went. Wearing his favorite red Manchester United shirt, the one I specifically put on him in case we somehow got separated, he was easy to spot; it just took me longer than I expected!

The spice ladies, who were selling from enormous woven baskets, beckoned Julian to come visit. Once I knew his location and that he was safe, I realized that he was never in danger. Their kindness and love overflowed as beautifully as their smiling eyes and flowing language. One of my teammates joked later that cordial, friendly Julian would be the first among us to find a hot meal and a place to stay in Addis Ababa, before the rest of us knew what happened!

In the time since I wrote this devotional, I have immersed myself in biblical research, assisting pastors in their sermon-writing efforts while also blogging and writing various articles and small-group Bible study questions for magazines. One of my latest writing projects is an honest back-and-forth talk with my son about our viewpoints and the differences between our generations. I’ve also written about anxiety as a Christian. And I wrote a children’s fantasy book about a little girl who learns to slay her dragon with the help of a sisterhood of priests that is based on my personal trauma therapy experiences.

Julian will be 18 years old just three days after “Never Lost” will be published in The Upper Room. The world is not what I imagined it would be back in 2009 for him or my daughter. We are living in such strange, sometimes frightening times, aren’t we? Thankfully, we can take heart that none of our troubles or concerns are lost on the Father; we just need to keep our eyes on the Son.