Why me?

I must admit I am a sucker for shows such as Undercover Boss. I love to see people who work hard and do the right thing be rewarded for their integrity and work ethic. There is something about seeing someone’s life changed because of the generosity of another that just makes me smile.

Undercover Boss recorded a few episodes they titled “Celebrity Undercover Boss” and one of them featured music icon Darius Rucker. He disguised himself and went around Nashville looking for musicians trying to break into the industry. He found a few singers and artists he chose to help. One of the first ones he selected was a couple who played their music and sang in bars while juggling being first time parents. Rucker blessed them by sending them to California to attend Musicians Institute, provided money for their living expenses while they attended, and purchased them new guitars. One of the things that struck me is the female asked, “I have a question. Why us?”

Rucker’s response: “Because you’re special”.

How many times have we been the recipient of something good, or even bad, where we found ourselves saying “why me?” We all have been on the receiving end of the greatest gift; even larger than any gift a boss could bestow on Undercover Boss. We have been the recipients of the love, sacrifice, and heart of Jesus Christ.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

Why me? Why you?

Have you ever looked at God and wondered what God saw in you? Why would the God of the universe humble himself to a small child in a feeding trough and come for me? Why would he come for you?

St. John tells us it is because Jesus loves us. It’s because we have God’s heart. But why? Why does He love us? What is it about us that causes God to love us? For that, we must go back to the beginning.

“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” (Genesis 1:26)

“God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good.” (Genesis 1:31)

When we look at God, raise our hand, and say “I have a question, why me?” God’s answer, like Rucker’s to the couple, “because you’re special.” When Rucker watched the couple perform their songs on stage, he did not count every missed note. He looked deeper into their heart. He saw their heart for what they are doing, their love of music, and the passion behind what they were doing. He did not see their mistakes; he saw them for what they were as a whole.

God does the same with us. He desires and urges us to repent of the mistakes (sins) we make, but he does not focus on the sins we confess. He does not obsess over the missed notes of life. He looks at the overall picture, the heart, the passion, and the love within each of us and He offers us a gift to make it better. He offers the gift of Himself to provide eternal life. He looks at us and calls us “good”. The question we should be asking is not “why me?” but “do I want to be better and live better?” The question we all must answer in our life is “do I want what Jesus is offering? Do I want Jesus?”