Christ, the Good Shepherd, Seeks the Lost

This Sunday is "Good Shepherd" Sunday, and I've been thinking about the image of Christ as the shepherd. He leaves the 99 to go out and find the 1 that is lost! It seems to me that this is not only a consolation for us, as all of us find ourselves lost from time to time; but it is also an example to us that we should not give up on the 1 lost sheep for the sake of remaining with the 99 who are "with us." I fear there are a number of Catholics today--and many of them vocal ones--that would rather leave the lost to perish rather than remove themselves from the "found." They would be content to be a small remnant Church rather than tolerate those who don't believe, think or worship exactly like they do. But do I do any better? I often find myself taking the easier path of just "preaching to the choir," keeping company with other Jesuits a lot of the time, or spending time with students who already have enthusiasm for Christ's message. How often do I go after the lost sheep? Christ, the Good Shepherd, goes out and gathers the strays again and again and again. He doesn't give up on us, and I take that to mean that we shouldn't give up on each other! Yes, it's far easier and less dangerous to simply remain with all those sheep who are already "with us," but is that what Christ did? Did he just stick with the apostles and not preach to those that might reject his word (as they do in John 6, this week's daily Mass reading)? Did he only invite the fully formed or convinced to dine with him? If he had taken the easy way, then he wouldn't have been such a scandal. But, then he wouldn't have been doing what God wanted of him either. Who are the lost that God is calling us to preach to, dine with or go looking for? Are we doing it?