Prayer for Lost Things to Be Found: Car keys gone missing, your cell phone has gone missing. A son who has abandoned God, or a parent who has turned to drugs. There are numerous ways in which we and the things around us can become disoriented. The results are the same whether intentional or unintentional. Confusion. Disarray. Worry. These are just a few of the words that describe us when we are feeling lost.
That’s when we have a choice: look for what was lost or accept not finding it. We may have an immediate need to find our car, but do we have the same urgency to reconnect with God? We may search tirelessly for a misplaced cell phone, but do we pray as fervently for a missing child?
How do we respond to lost things as Christians? How do we respond when we are lost ourselves? We should get down on our knees and pray for lost things, to find them, or to be found.
Continue reading if you or someone you know is experiencing the lost feeling. We will look at Scripture that provides hope in the midst of despair. This text will remind us that misplaced items can be found, and people who have turned away can be redirected. Following that, we will read three ways to use prayer for lost things to find hope.
Prayer for Lost Things Is Biblical
There is a biblical precedent for praying for lost items. The Prodigal Son is a well-known story that appears in a parable told by Jesus (Luke 15:11-32). A father raised two sons, both of whom are now adults, in this story. The younger son demanded his inheritance before it was due. The father complied and divided the estate among his sons, giving each a fair share.
The older brother was in charge of his inheritance and stayed at home with his father. The younger brother, on the other hand, left home and squandered the money. This brother became disoriented in a variety of ways. He lost his money, was isolated in a foreign country, and lacked the stability he had at home.
The younger son was then given the option of remaining lost or embarking on a search. He chose the latter, preferring to reunite with his father and be financially, emotionally, and spiritually restored (Luke 15:18-19). The father was overjoyed to see his son return home. While the son was content to be nothing more than a hired hand, the father gave his younger son more than he asked for. Why? The father was overjoyed that his long-lost son had been found.
“Then bring the fattened calf and slaughter it, and let’s celebrate with a feast because this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and found!” said the father. (Luke 15:23-24). This parable teaches us an important lesson: what is lost can be found, as can people who are lost.
What the Bible Tells Us About Finding Lost Things
According to one interpretation of this parable, God is the father, and both sons represent believers. Let us begin with a fundamental truth: God blesses His children. God may bless us with spouses, children, work, knowledge, skills, and other things.
As Christ’s followers, we can use those blessings responsibly, living life as God has commanded. On the other hand, we can use God’s blessings irresponsibly and live our lives in ways that contradict God’s principles. We are found when we are with God, but we become lost when we are not.
To be found when we are lost, we must do as the prodigal son did in the aforementioned parable. He admitted defeat after losing what he believed made him powerful and worthy. The son humbled himself. He then devised a strategy to improve his situation. That plan entailed returning home, telling his father what he was willing to do, and following through on his word.
When the son was reunited with his father, he sought forgiveness and repentance for what he had done wrong. The father was relieved to have his son back. Similarly, God is always delighted to have us back. We can use this story to outline four basic steps for finding lost items.
- Humble Ourselves: We can become lost due to an accident, our pride, or our own incompetence. Whatever the reason, we must admit we are lost before we can take steps to be found.
- Make a plan: Simply stating that we want to be found is not enough; we must also outline practical steps for ourselves based on the situation.
- Seek forgiveness: Part of humbling oneself is admitting fault when necessary, and where fault exists, there is reason to seek forgiveness.
- Repentance: In order to avoid becoming lost again, we must change our character, just as the prodigal son changed his character after reuniting with his family.
These are all helpful steps for being found, but they do not always cover lost items. Prayer is the one step we can always take for people who are lost, when we are lost, or when something dear to us is lost.
St Anthony
Both the Portuguese and the Italians claim Saint Anthony as their own, and with good reason: born in Lisbon in 1195 as Fernando de Bulloes y Taveira de Azevedo, he took the name Antonio upon entering the Order of Friars Minor (that is, the Franciscan Order) in homage to San Antonio Abad. In Padua, where he died and is buried, stands the Basilica dedicated to him, popularly known simply as “il Santo” -“the saint”- no further explanation required.
Saint Anthony is commonly referred to as the “Patron Saint of Lost Things.” It all stems from a story from his past. A novice stole his book of Psalms. When St. Anthony prayed to God for its recovery, the novice gave it back to him.
Prayer to Saint Anthony for Lost Things
This prayer to St. Anthony is very powerful. Some people believe that saying the prayer in the evening will increase your chances of finding your lost item.
Others believe that praying while kneeling on the holy ground near an object associated with St Anthony, such as a statue or a picture of him, is more effective. There are several versions of this prayer, but all of them ask St. Anthony for assistance in finding the object that is being prayed for, whether it is a person’s soul or simply an item that someone wants back.
Countless people have turned to St. Anthony in their hour of need over the centuries, and their prayers have often been answered. Invoking his intercession does not always guarantee that the item will be found, but when someone prays to St. Anthony with an open heart and honest faith, God always answers the petition in some way.
Here is a popular prayer to St. Anthony for the recovery of a misplaced item, as well as a catchy rhyme that is simple to remember.
St. Anthony, perfect imitator of Jesus, who received from God the special power of restoring lost things, grant that I may find [name the item] which has been lost. At least restore to me peace and tranquility of mind, the loss of which has afflicted me even more than my material loss. To this favor, I ask another of you: that I may always remain in possession of the true good that is God. Let me rather lose all things than lose God, my supreme good. Let me never suffer the loss of my greatest treasure, eternal life with God. Amen