Listen to Devotion

Then Jesus told them this parable, “Suppose one of you had a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”

Luke 15:3-7

Even One

Are you a numbers person? Maybe you love hearing how many people were in church last Sunday or maybe you enjoy being able to tell your faculty and staff how many people attended an event that you held at your school. Sometimes numbers can be an encouragement and sometimes they can bring us down. They can make us feel successful or like a failure.

Jesus cared about numbers, too. While, of course, He cares about every single person on this earth, He also made it known that He cares about a very low number as well. He cares about the number one.

In our reading for today, Jesus has an important message to share, Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” Luke 15:3-7

There is a next level joy that comes with even one lost sheep being found.

While it might be tricky not to focus on the number of students and their families sitting in the pew, the one student that hears the Gospel for the first time or the one family member of your student that hears about grace and it washes over them like rain…praise God. While we struggle to think that it all depends on us, let us remember that we are mere instruments of the Lord. Let us be humbled and do our work faithfully and then let us joyfully watch what the Lord does through us.

What an honor and privilege it is to teach the Word of God to His littlest lambs. You might never see the fruits of your labor, but the Lord sees it and is doing things that we can’t even imagine.

Give your numbers to Him with full confidence that He is pleased and overjoyed with even one.

Prayer:

Perfect Shepherd, thank you for running after us. Thank you for being a perfect example of what is looks like to care so deeply about those who don’t know or love you yet. Help us push away the focus we put on the numbers and rather focus on the souls you have entrusted to our care. Thank you for the privilege it is to serve you in this way. Amen.

A Question to Consider:

Who is someone in your everyday life that you see the Lord working on? Praise God for His Word. It works!