“It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest most uninteresting person you talk to may one day be a creature which,if you say it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare. All day long we are, in some degree helping each other to one or the other of these destinations. It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilites, it is with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all of our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit – immortal horrors or everlasting splendors” (C.S. Lewis)

There are no ordinary people.  Everyone you meet is uniquely designed and handcrafted by the very God who made and sustains everything. That includes you. In God’s eyes, there are no throwaways or outcasts or losers. He sees all of us as extraordinary.

That changes a lot. It changes how I view other people. It changes how I see me.

I heard something neat in Kairos tonight. Jesus didn’t choose those who made the cut for His followers. He didn’t choose the best picks available on the board (to use a sports analogy). He didn’t pick the most influential or noteworthy or acclaimed. He picked me. He picked you.

He chose illiterate fishermen and tax collectors and misguided zealots. He picked what we would call ordinary people. Like you and me. He said, “I see something in you that you don’t even see in yourself and I will do everything to bring that something out in you.”

He didn’t call us to be fans, but followers. That’s what a disciple is– someone who not only knows Jesus, but follows Him. Someone who is “all in.”

Are you a fan or are you a follower? I had to admit that lately I’ve been more of a sideline fan than a follower who gets his feet dirty. I want to do more than like Jesus on facebook. I want to be known by His name and to look like Him. Do you?

Lord, make us followers who who will be willing to give up everything we could never keep to gain what we will never be able to lose. We want to be ALL IN from now on.

Amen.