The One Jesus Loves
Monday, August 10, 2015
I dislike mixers. When on occasion I am required to attend a conference for work, and there is the obligatory mixer on the second full day in, I usually skip it. First there is the intimidation posed by little clumps of people standing together who seem to already know each other. And second, there is the fact that much of this discussion is idle chatter that dances around who we really are. We’re not entering into long-term relationships with these people, so it seems like a vain exercise. No one is saying who they really are. (Well, occasionally someone might, but usually there is a warning sign attached to them.)
In her devotional for children, Thoughts to Make your Heart Sing, Sally Lloyd-Jones nails what I really want to say in such networking events, and what would likely part the waters:
“When you first meet someone, she might
ask, ‘Who are you?’
And you might say, ‘Well, I’m So-and-So.
and I’m very good at this thing and that
thing and here’s where I live and this is
my family and — ‘
But do you know who God says you are?
The one Jesus loves.”
At least one disciple of Jesus referred to himself in just that way, as “the disciple whom Jesus loved,” or the “beloved disciple.” Yet we all have such warrant. All over the world we identify ourselves by our vocation, family history, tribe, nation, interests, and religion. But is it not paramount, a primary identity, to say, “I’m [insert name], the one Jesus loves?” (Gal. 2:20).
So that’s another reason I don’t go to mixers. One day, there might come that awkward moment of introduction, when eyes turn toward me, and I tell them who I really am.