One and Ninety Nine

Nothing is quite as stunning as the realization that God loves you.  It is not unusual though for God’s people to question His devotion to them; is He really for us or more concerned about some agenda that extends beyond us.  Do we possess the whole of His affection or is God distracted by some bigger issue?   Have we been created as a pawn; a fairly insignificant component to a broad scheme God has in mind?  Here is where we must pause in front of our Lord's own statements about us.  Twice He spoke metaphorically of a one out of a hundred situation where the one is of much more significance than the ninety-nine others in the group.  In God's economy, you never are a part of the ninety-nine, you are always the one.  You are the one in need...the one facing struggles...the one with hardship and heartache.  The ninety-nine are always someone else, someone you don't know.  The one, regardless if you are the one in Calcutta or the one in Hong Kong or the one in Berlin or the one sitting on a park bench in Memphis is you.  You are the one who has caught God's eye.  You are the one whose prayer He pays careful attention to hear.  You are the one He thinks about with undivided affection and devotion.  Ninety-nine may get past Him somehow but not you the one.  You are the apple of His eye, the object of His concentrated gaze.  When God had His discussion with Satan in the Heavenlies, He did not point out five or six of his favorites, the Lord only spoke of one and his name was Job.  God did not pull in a thousand doubters in the upper room, He only motioned to Thomas and our Lord gave him a private showing of His wounds.  One walked on the water with Jesus and it was one He pulled out of His disbelief and helped get back into the boat.  He looks at you and is not distracted by ninety-nine others.  His mind is not pulled to some problem on the side that also needs to be solved.  He loves you.  He looks for you.  He cares for you.  The great mystery of God is that somehow He can keep His eye on you when there is a world of chaos all about.      It cannot be that our Savior loses track of you; He is always thinking of you, always searching for your good in the midst of every trial you face.  Never have the audacity of accusing God of being distracted by some more important issue.    You are the one on His mind.

In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.   Matthew 18: 14 NIV