THE POWER OF THE “ONE”…

ACTS 9:3-6: “As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

OBSERVATION: Have you ever considered the POWER OF THE “ONE”? In today’s culture, business, and the church, we tend to focus on the group rather than the individual. Yet, God has always pursued the individual. Jesus always focused on the person, not the crowd. It is the ONE LOST SHEEP that is always near and dear to the Father’s heart.

It has been over a month since I made my last post. On October 17 I went into the hospital for knee replacement surgery. Unfortunately, this proved to be anything but routine. It appeared I contracted an infection while in the hospital and I spent a total of 11 days in the hospital while they treated me with antibiotics and tried to find out the source of the infection.

During this time I was in intense pain and also confusion from all of the drugs I was receiving. Reality seemed to be out of reach and the minutes turned into days, the hours to weeks, the days to years as I watched the clock ticking ever so slowly. In the hospital, I was on a floor with many other patients. I received great care but I was part of a group. Personal attention can only go so far when you have to care for an entire floor.

Yet, in the midst of all of this – there was the POWER OF THE ONE! First, and foremost, there was my loving wife who was with me every day. She guided me through my confusion and my doubts and encouraged me as she supported me with her love and prayers. I felt like she was my only lifeline to reality as reality seemed to be slipping away.

Then, there was my surgeon. As my stay in the hospital went on day after day, as more doctors were assigned to my case, there was only one doctor who came to see me every day and sometimes twice a day. It was my surgeon who became not only a friend but an advocate in my recovery process. He even took my case home and discussed it with his wife, who is also a doctor, looking for clues into what was going on with me.

There was my pastor. I knew that I had family, friends and a loving church family praying for me as I went through this journey. However, it was my pastor who came and sat with me numerous times during this hospital stay. I was able to share with him my feelings and emotions and he offered his love, support, and prayers as I wandered through this maze and probably did not make much sense most of the time.

Finally, there were two important friends. One in Texas and one in Florida. Both pastors, and both leading very busy lives. However, they did not cease to reach out to me, to pray for me, encourage me, and let me know that I was in their continual thoughts and prayers. They did not just call once or twice to see how I was doing and then go on with their lives. They contacted me frequently and showed the love of Christ in a tangible way.

Through all of these people, God was showing me that I was not forgotten. I was not just part of a group that afforded a mention on a prayer list. I was personally, intimately, and individually important to Him. God extended His love to me through the love, actions, and caring of ONE PERSON to ONE IN NEED!

This is how God works. This is what He is calling us to emulate. This is the call of the Gospel. It is to leave the 99 and search for the ONE. It is to single out one lost person on the road to Damascus from the midst of a group of people and personally speak into their lives. As you read Paul’s conversion and the accounts that follow you will find that this is how God works.

He sent Phillip to the Ethiopian Eunuch. He sent Ananias to pray for Saul so that Saul could receive his sight, be baptized, and begin his ministry for Jesus. He sent Peter to the home of Cornelius, a Gentile, to proclaim the Gospel so that the work of the Kingdom could be extended to all men. In all of these accounts, God reached out to the ONE. It was through the ONE that God impacted the MANY.

So many times in the life of the church we focus on the group. We talk about how many people attended on a given Sunday, what the offering amount was, and how many showed up to the Saturday outreach. We call people to fill the empty seats in the church. We are so focused on reaching the MULTITUDES that we completely miss the INDIVIDUAL! God does not build His Kingdom through reaching crowds.

God has, and always will, build His Kingdom through reaching one person at a time.

This truth can radically transform our lives and ministries. Whereas I am unable to reach the multitude, I can always reach the ONE. There is always someone I can show love to. I can visit them in the hospital. I can call them with encouragement. I can build them up with a prophetic word. I believe if we begin to focus on the ONE, the ONE that God is calling me to touch with the love of God, the ONE that is lost and in my path, we will see a radical transformation in our churches and our outreach.

People are hungry to know that they are loved. People are desperate to know that they are important. People are waiting for someone who will step out of the crowd and into their life. I can be that person. You can be that person. Together, as we take the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the ONE we can be part of a harvest of souls in these last days.

Lord, help me to be ONE with You and extend Your love to the ONE you are calling me to help, encourage, and show the way!

“And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.” John 17:22-23

In Jesus’ Name!