Celebration

Celebration
 “Just so, I tell you, there is rejoicing before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” -Luke 15:10

 Friday afternoon. It’s a middle school basketball game, the opening act before the evening’s Homecoming festivities. The score is pretty lopsided in our favor, and so players who don’t see a lot of action are out there on the floor, giving it their all. Among them is one boy who hasn’t scored a single point all season long. He is fouled. He has one precious free throw. He shoots…he scores! And his team erupts. The guys out there with him are slapping him on the shoulder and high-fiving him with gusto. On the sidelines, the bench rises from their seats, arms in the air, jumping up and down, shouting for all they are worth. If you saw the moment in isolation, you would think it was a game-winning three-pointer.
 
My eyes filled right along with my heart, and a thousand thoughts flew at me: This is sportsmanship. This is friendship. This is Christian brotherhood. And then another thought. This is a glimpse of heaven. In a relatively small gymnasium in a very small school in a small southern town, I witnessed a kingdom moment. This is what it looks like in heaven every time a sinner comes home. There is rejoicing before the angels.
 
It seems right now as if such moments in heaven must be few and far between. Maybe that’s true. Then again, we’re pretty Amero-centric here. These things happen all around the world, and sometimes we forget that even when there is darkness in one place, there is always light in another. It’s not really important how often it happens, anyway, because that is all within the will of a Sovereign God and the power of the Holy Spirit. And besides, it isn’t the many the angels are cheering for, remember. It’s the one. The angels don’t celebrate every time the counter rolls to a hundred, or a thousand, or a million, but for every single one.
 
Who is the one? For me, it may be the difficult kid who won’t make any effort at his work, because he is so accustomed to failure, he is now afraid to try. Or maybe it’s the quiet one, the one in the back, on the right. He doesn’t say much, but I know his home life is a minefield. Or maybe it’s the sweet one with the tender blue eyes and the mischievous grin. He works so hard, and he never seems discouraged, but I know sometimes he must be. His struggle is extremely real. It's different for you, of course. Maybe it’s the surly one in the next cubicle. Maybe it’s the shy one you carpool with. Or it could be the crochety, elderly one next door. Only God really knows that. All we can do is look at whomever He has placed in front of us and go for broke.
 
So, look around. Find the one. Share the good news of Jesus Christ. And if and when it is received with an open heart, tune your ears to heaven and listen for the cheers.
 
Amen.