This is not a true story. It is one I made up, but I hope it blesses you.

A man had a dream that he was walking with Jesus. He asked the Lord to show him the beauty of God’s kingdom. In his mind he pictured a perfect world where there were no unlovable people. He thought of a place where he would have no enemies. Everyone would agree on everything, and everyone would do right all the time. Most of all it would be a place where he himself would have no weaknesses, and he would never fail God again. He pondered what a beautiful place that would be.

Jesus began to show the man the kingdom of God. Yet, the fellow was puzzled at what the Lord revealed. Jesus took him to the worst part of the man’s city. There he saw the outcasts, the homeless, and the worst sinners. Then Jesus brought him before the man’s worst enemies. He told the fellow to look into the eyes of the people who had caused him the most pain. Finally, the man saw images of his own life. He saw his worst failures and his greatest defeats.

The man exclaimed “Enough! How can this be the kingdom of God? It is so ugly!” Jesus touched the fellow’s eyes, and he began to see things that he had never seen before. He saw how much the Lord loved the outcasts and even the worst sinners. He saw that Jesus loved the people that had hurt the man the most with a relentless love. Finally, the man saw how much Jesus loved him even in the midst of his failures.

The man fell on his knees and praised God saying, “How beautiful is your kingdom Lord! How beautiful is the kingdom of God!