There is a dog book entitled, “You Had Me at Woof” by Julie Klam. Obviously the title is a takeoff on a movie line, “You had me at hello.” I think I could go one better since I was smitten with my wife before I had a chance to say “Hello.” She was fourteen and was on the platform in church. I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. Being that I cannot remember not going to church Jesus was always a part of my life. I have often wondered what it is like for someone to fall in love with Jesus. When would they say Jesus had them? Was it the first time they heard about the cross and the resurrection? Or would they say, “You had me at John 3:16?”
What is it that attracts people to the story of someone who lived here two thousand years ago? Could it be a soul hunger that haunts us with the truth that there has to be something more than this seventy years? I have a friend who upon passing away filled me with a sense of waste. He was brilliant. He was a theologian. He knew the Biblical languages like we know English. He was kind and thoughtful. To just bury all that in a box is so wrong. There has to be more.
The story of Jesus answers that need for more. His personal righteousness, His promises, His own death and resurrection, His emphasis on a personal Father God all speak to our spiritual and psychological needs. Perhaps if I had first heard of Jesus when I was an adult I would have said, “You had me when you washed Judas’ feet.”
Written by Roger Bothwell on January 14, 2011
Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574
Rogerbothwell.org