Sometimes a bad illustration can drive home a point (in spite of the bad illustration).
One that's helped me went something like this:
If you were in a room with 9 other people and Jesus was going to enter and heal only one person, you would be that one person He'd choose.
While the illustration begs many questions, the kind of "oh, I feel special" feelings inherent in that kind of scenerio are what hit home with me. Knowing that the King of the Universe might actually pay attention to me, make eye contact with me and approach me and talk to me in a crowded room, much less heal me...that kind of thought lifts my countenance and self-worth.
It'd be much easier not to mess with a flawed illustration, but the truth is this: God made you with great care and He values you as a dear treasure. You are so important to Him.
Yeah, He loves us all, but He is the Great Shepherd Who would leave the 99 to seek and find the one.
Like Mike Pritzl once said from the stage, "God is so for you."
Posted by Doug Van Pelt at September 10, 2004 09:33 AM