I had a wonderfully providential meeting with a member of our Calvary family this week. And in the midst of our conversation about our church, this person shared a really important moment in their life.
It was a number of years ago, and they were attending another church in the Midwest. And as I recall the story, the pastor of that church, I think on a fairly regular basis, would say to the congregation, “You matter to God.”
It was at a time in their life where they felt like they didn’t matter to anyone, much less God. And it was this really important moment, to realize, I matter. That simple and yet profound truth — I matter. I could see in this person’s eyes, hear in their voice, how profound—how powerful—those four words had been. That the effects and reverberations were still felt, still making a difference, still true, all these years later.
I wonder if there is someone here, feeling the same way. You woke up this morning, and wondered if you matter to anyone, much less God. You wonder if anyone notices you, or would even recognize if you were here or not on a Sunday morning.
Shoot, even if you don’t feel that way, I think everyone here would take great comfort and joy and hope, knowing that you matter to the God of the universe.
I am so grateful that I had the privilege to hear that story this week, because I think it perfectly communicates what John—and Jesus as the main character of John’s story, the main character of the Whole Story of the Bible (!)—it communicates what John wants us to know. He wants us to know that we matter to God. That there is a place where we fit in, no matter our history, no matter what we have done, no matter our story. A place that, if we weren’t there, we would be missed. A place where we belong.
And that place is in his family.
But before we go any further, let’s pray, in the way that the Son of God taught us,
Our Father…
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I invite you now to watch or listen to the sermon on John, where we learn that the whole book could be summed up this way—You matter to God.
If you’d like some additional resources on John, head on over to the Bible Project page for this story. And finally, to prepare for this coming Sunday, be sure to read the book of Luke (it is 24 chapters and takes about 2.5 hours to read) and study it further through these resources.
I look forward to worshiping the Son of God with you on Sunday.
Warmly,
Pastor Matthew
matthew@calvarystcloud.org
matthewmolesky.com
