Daily Word of Grace # 190 (December 7, 2020)
In the 2019 fascinating documentary ZZ Top: That Little Ol’ Band from Texas a story is recounted about a concert they performed in their early days when they were on the road playing at bars, roadhouses, anywhere they could get a gig. At one concert there was only one person who showed up to hear them. Can you imagine that? ZZ Top had driven to the bar, set up all their equipment, tuned their instruments, completed the sound check…and only one person showed up. ZZ Top apologized to that one person and said they guessed they would cancel the concert…but that one person asked if they could please go ahead and play their whole set because he was so excited to see them. ZZ Top did just that—they played their entire concert, played their hearts out, for that one fan. And for many years afterwards that one fan kept showing up at many of their concerts, even when they hit the bigtime and began playing in large arenas and even stadiums. What that one fan did for ZZ Top—kept showing up even if he was the only one there; and what ZZ Top did for that one fan—played their hearts out even though he was the only one in the audience—is what Jesus does for you. Jesus always shows up, and Jesus always plays his heart out, even at the cost of his life, as on Good Friday. What Jesus did for the whole world, Jesus would have done for only you. In response to such committed love we can “sing a new song to the Lord” (Psalm 96:1).
Love and Prayers,
Dave