April 7, 2026 – Daily Devotional
…‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ -Luke 15:6
As I write this devotional, the NCAA basketball tournament is underway. It is one of the year’s more exciting sporting events. The sixty-eight best teams in the country compete for the opportunity to be called National Champions. These teams fight hard as they play game after game, knowing that if they lose, they go home, and if they win, they stay in the fight.
The teams come from all over the country. Many of them are in the tournament year after year. That is not the case for High Point University from North Carolina. In 2025, the Purple Panthers of High Point made their first appearance in the NCAA tournament. They returned this year and recorded their first win ever in the tournament. They made history by upsetting the Wisconsin Badgers 83-82 in the first round. It was an exciting win for their university.
Chase Johnston is a basketball player for High Point University. Chase is a graduate student. He plays guard for High Point and made the game-winning basket over Wisconsin. Chase Johnston wears the number 99. This is an unusual number for a player to wear in basketball. When asked why he chose this number, Chase shared his faith and a wonderful understanding of the love of God found in Christ Jesus.
In Luke’s gospel, Jesus tells the parable of the shepherd who had one hundred sheep. One of those sheep wandered off. The shepherd makes the decision to leave the ninety-nine to seek and save the lost sheep. When he finds the lost sheep, he calls together his friends and neighbors and asks them to celebrate with him. It is a powerful parable about how heaven rejoices when we find faith in God.
Chase Johnston chose to wear 99 to remind us that each and every person matters to God. God loves us and actively cares for us. When we are lost and feel alone in the darkness, God comes for us. His love is our light. God goes out of his way to find us. This is the good news. This is what is revealed at Easter. There is nothing in this world that can keep God from you…not even death. The love of God is remarkably bold. It is a love that looks for the least and the lost.
-Rev. Keith King, Pastor of Worship
