Confident Humility

As Lloyd preached a few Sunday mornings ago, his words resonated with the experience I had had the day before. You see, I took a chance at something, I never take chances, and through my story you will see that I don’t actually believe in chance. I entered a contest and attempted to win a new car.

I was standing in the parking lot of a car dealership in Phoenix for three hours. I was by myself, well not quite true because one of our family’s really good friends was in the cow suit, but I didn’t really hang with him much because he was kind of busy. Okay, I digress. I was standing there for many hours waiting for “chance” to play out. I was one of 105 people called to come to the event in which each person would have an opportunity to try and start a new Kia Sorento.
Out of those 105 people, only 66 showed up and put their name in the hat to win the car. There were 66 keys placed into a large jar. Each contestant was given a raffle ticket when they arrived. Half way through the event, the raffle ticket numbers were called, determining the order in which we would choose our key. As each raffle number was called, I continued to wait. The first twenty were chosen, and I prayed, “Lord, that is okay there are a lot of keys and I don’t think being one of the first twenty is necessarily a good thing.”

But when the numbers reached forty and I still didn’t have a place in line, well I was a bit more discouraged. I looked around, knowing that my God leaves nothing to chance, that if He wanted to give me that new car He would no matter my number in line. He is the God who even controls the outcome of a dice roll, right, so He was in the drawing of the raffle numbers too. I was becoming discouraged because I was pretty sure He was saying “No” to the new car.

I looked around knowing everyone had at least whispered a prayer to win the car, and I began to consider those around me who probably needed the car more than I did. Some people had several kids, others were young, just staring out, and one guy was in the military, just back from basic training. All in more need than I was, but that is when the knowledge of God’s love for us, for me, really hit my heart.

At that moment, when I was comparing myself and my value or worthiness to all those around me, I was filled with utter peace and a quiet joy. I was so thankful that salvation isn’t a contest. It is a free gift and there isn’t just one shot to win it either. Every single one of us is at the same level of “need”. The amount of money we have does not lessen our need for Jesus, actually according to Jesus, it might increase our need. But God doesn’t look down from heaven and say, “Okay, that one is worthy, and that one isn’t. That one really needs Me, but that one doesn’t.” He doesn’t roll the dice and say, “You’re in, and you’re out.”

Instead, He says, “I love the WORLD.” He loves every single one of us, and wishes for NONE to perish. Isn’t that amazing?!? I don’t even think we can comprehend His ability to see us for who we are, who He made us to be without comparing us to anyone else. We might have a little bit of that kind of love toward our kids, but in our humanness, we still look around at others and contrast our kid’s strengths and weaknesses with others. But our Father doesn’t put us into categories or groupings like that. He loves us…neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, neither male nor female, but all are one in Christ.

So, when Lloyd preached that God does not just love us, that He likes us, I thought back to the day before and knew that was totally true. He likes us so much He wants a relationship with us no matter who we are. It doesn’t matter what we wear, what we drive, where we live, what we look like, how we speak, or even the sinfulness of our hearts. He wants to KNOW us! He wants to spend time with us. He likes us.

It is very possible that most of the people at the event last Saturday were Christians, because it was a KLOVE and Chick-Fil-A sponsored event, so it wasn’t like anyone had a leg up on anyone else, an in with the “Big Guy”. We were all there because He had chosen us to be, and when I was chosen 61st in a group of 66, I knew if He wanted to, He could give me the right key to start the car. He delighted in all of us that day, and probably heard from a lot of us, more than He has in a while. So, when I wasn’t chosen, and found out number 31 was the number of the day, I was okay with that, because I found out, through the three hours of time that at first felt wasted, a new aspect in my relationship with my Father.

Why was number 31 chosen that day? I don’t know. I don’t know if her need was greater, if she needed a miracle in her life to strengthen her faith, or if she simply needed a new car, but what I do know is that my Father doesn’t love me any less because He didn’t give me the car.

I can live my life with a confident knowledge that I am loved, and if any gift is worth all others, it is the gift of love. Because I am loved, I can freely love others. We can walk through our lives with confident humility, loving as well as liking others because our Jesus first loved us.