I Became A Christian And All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt

So I'm reading the above-titled book because we are going to do a message series based on the book at the church I work at.

It's pretty good so far - humorous, insightful and pretty powerful. I liked this quote the best so far:

Perhaps you've had an alias. You've been given other names besides your real one. Could it be that those names have shaped you? Maybe they've left you feeling unlovable, unable to understand how you could possibly be the one Jesus loves.

Well, other people may have told you that you're not worthy much, but the truth is that God wouldn't trade you for anything. In fact, when he set the price tag on you, it was His Son.

And you may be torn and broken. You may still bear the marks of deep wounds. But God is a master at reconstructive surgery.

And perhaps, because of all this, you have difficulty connecting with God. You feel like your prayers bounce back at you off the ceiling. At church other people sing out the worship songs, but you struggle to, not necessarily because you have a bad voice but because the words come from a bad heart. And so you're sure that to God, it's bad music. But no, when God hears you, he moves in tight.

You know why? Because you are his. Because since the beginning of your life, you have belonged to him. He shaped you in your mother's womb and his finger marks are permanently embedded in you.

You are the one Jesus loves.