We Are Found

We are found. 

We are no longer sheep fallen in a canyon, out of sight and beyond aid. 

We are found. 

We have been lifted up by gentle, calloused, scarred hands. 

We have been embraced. 

We are now placed behind the Shepherd as we do our best to stumble on weak legs, the very same legs that gave out on us before we were found. 

We may find our limbs stuck on brambles, our legs failing beneath us, winds blurring our view of the path ahead—kicking up sand and debris as we try to press on, eyes growing bleary as the endless days fade into endless nights. 

But as we are stuck or uncertain or weary, all that it takes is a small bleat for our Shepherd, the one whose voice we know so well, to hear us and come to untangle us from the bramble, to wait with us as we regain strength, to shield our eyes from the sands with his cloak, to sleep beside us when we cannot walk any farther that day, to place us onto his shoulders when our legs have been broken. 

One bleat. 

We have been found, we do not have to render our voices hoarse, our throats sore, and our bodies brittle from endless attempts to regain our direction. 

Anytime we need it, he is there to embrace us. 

To envelop us in his perfect warmth and care. 

To walk beside us until we return to his flock. 

We are found.

—Madison Cowley, Winter 2026 Latter-day Saint Insights Contest Winner

FEATURE IMAGE BY JOEL MUNIZ