All throughout my radio days…now approaching almost sixty years!… I have understood that the best radio engagement is when the presenter understands he/she is speaking to just one person. We call radio a very intimate medium, and that is the reason why.

I grew up in an era of pre-television, when families actually sat around a big console radio and listened to variety programs and radio dramas. Not true today. Our radio and podcast audiences are typically by themselves in a car, or listening on earphones or ear pods on a commuter train, or while jogging in the neighborhood. One person.

While I knew that to be true and have tried to both practice and teach that technique, it was not until this past week that I understood it also had biblical foundations. And of all places, it came from a sermon on Jesus and the “wee little man” Zacchaeus. It is a familiar story, especially for little children. You may have already started singing the song:

Zacchaeus was a wee little man, and a wee little man was he.
He climbed up in the sycamore tree for the Lord he wanted to see.

My friend Dr. David Allen preached on the passage in Luke 19 that tells the story. It happened in Jericho on Jesus’ way to Jerusalem. Crowds pressed around the roadway, waiting for Jesus to pass. But due to Zacchaeus’ size, he had to take radical action to catch a glimpse of Christ. So up the sycamore tree he went.

David Allen’s point, which is relevant to us in the media, is this: Jesus doesn’t “see” the crowds. He sees the individual. In this case, it was a wee little man. And Jesus called him by name.

Another time, the crowds were pressing in on Jesus when a woman touched the edge of his garment. Immediately, Jesus asked, “Who touched me?” The disciples were incredulous. “The people are all around you, Jesus, pressing in…and you ask, ‘Who touched me?’”

Jesus sees the individual and addresses that specific person and their need. We ought to follow that pattern in our media presentations.

I cringe when I hear someone say, “Greetings to everyone out there in radioland.” It may be “radioland”, but we need to address the individual. Is there a scripture to share? Think of one person and give them that passage. You may be part of God’s instructions for life that person needs.

Sometimes, we can simply change our word usage. Instead of “Good morning, everyone,” we can simply give a personal “Good morning, how are you this morning?” But even that requires something…a change of mind and a change of heart.

We need to be less concerned with the big numbers and more concerned with the solitary person the Lord puts in our path. We need to follow the pattern set by our Savior and think less of the crowd and more of the person who needs a word from the Lord.

How many do you see? The many…or the one?

God’s best,