WWJD: What Would Jesus Drive?

My first car was a Datsun B-210. It was army green and was dubbed by my friends as “the Turtle” and was also affectionatly the “Green M&M”. The cool thing about that car was that it was a stick shift, very economical, got great gas mileage and was so easy to use. If you know anything about cars, stick shifts are much easier to work on then automatics. If the starter goes out… pop the clutch. There is lots of room under the hood and oil changes are simple.

Now (2007) I own a Saturn. Good car. It’s been pretty reliable and even at 180,000 miles and with crayons melted in the back seat from my beautiful daughters, it is still holding up.

The only problem is when something goes wrong, it’s so hard to fix. There is no space under the hood. I have to take this out to work on that, and that out to work on this. I can’t even do oil changes myself because there is no room to work (unless I buy a car lift and put it in my driveway).

What if Christians came in either an automatic or stick shift model? WWJD: What Would Jesus Drive?

The automatic Christian would have all the extras. There would be no room under the hood because they would have to have all the latest fads. Power windows and locks, heated seats, cruise control. You name it… they would have it. There would be so much crammed under the hood to make the car more enjoyable that when something would go wrong they couldn’t fix it themselves. When they would need something as simple as an oil change, they would have to call on someone that would know how to get in there and fix it. They would most likely be program driven (cruise control) Christians and they would make sure the car is washed and looking nice every Sunday morning. Their motto, “It’s all about me.”

The stick shift Christian might not be as "busy", as "bling", as trendy, hip or spectacular but under the hood they would have a simple engine. They would be very reliable. Working out simple problems would be a snap, popping the spiritual clutch would be a piece of cake, and they wouldn’t need to rely on others for simple routine maintenance. Though occasionally if something major went wrong, they would know to call a professional mechanic to help, but most likely they would watch him work so they could fix it if there is ever a next time. They would get great gas mileage (don't need a fill up every two miles) and would cost a lot less to maintain. Some people might say they should turn in the junker for a new model, but they would have learned the secret of contentment in any circumstance. Their motto, “It’s all about Jesus.” Simple. Easy. Reliable.

If I were Jesus, I would much rather drive a stick shift then an automatic. You see, I would love both, but I would find the stick shift a much easier car to use. How about you?

Spiritual Bulimia

I was looking over a Xanga account I had a few years ago, as I was shutting it down and I came across an old post I thought was rather interesting. So, in the spirit of "Good Preachin' Preacha!" I am going to republish here... enjoy :)

I heard a phrase recently that really stuck with me.
It was the phrase "Spiritual Bulimia."

So many of us have this common illness.
It's symptoms go something like this...

We go to church, Bible study, ministry, etc... we get fed. We take it all in. We actually enjoy eating the food of the Word and delight in God, but the moment we walk out the church doors, leave bible study, leave our Christian influences... we 'PURGE' the Word from our system. It's called "binge and purge'

We do that so we can fit into the status quo. So our friends won't notice we are gaining spiritual weight. The actual Hebrew word for weight is Kavod, or basically 'glory'.

So we throw-up the Glory of God on our lives to fit in to the world standards.

Try meditating on that today w/o throwing up, mmmm'kay?

...on the Bright Side

I saw something really strange yesterday. On my way home from work, I noticed a woman on a bicycle stopped at a red light putting on make-up. We have all seen some lady in her car at a red light applying lipstick, but this blew me away. Talk about a multi-tasker! It got even better when I noticed that she was using her sunglasses as a mirror. Way to be resourceful with what you got, lady.

Sometimes it’s easy to look over with envy at someone next to you who seems to have it all. This woman on the bike could have very easily been bitter that she didn’t have a car with a mirror, but instead she seemed to happily make due with what she had. For her, there is a lot less overhead expense, the wind doubles as a hair dryer, she is helping the environment, she is getting a good workout, and she most likely isn’t going to get honked at for not going when the light turns green by that impatient guy that follows us all around here in Chicago.

There is a bright side to everything… sometimes we just have to “look in the shadows” to find it (as a friend recently told me).

Desperate Wedding

So I heard recently about this strange vow that some people make with one another. They make a pact with each other that if they are not married by a certain age then they will get married to one another. Sounds crazy, right? Well, there actually are people out there that have made it work, but few and far between ever follow through with this kind of commitment.

Believe it or not, people do this to God all the time. It might not sound exactly like, “Jesus, if I don’t have a God by age 30, then I’ll serve you!” but they make the same sort of “vow” with words like “I haven’t lived it up enough yet to give my heart to God. Maybe when I get older I’ll think about it.”

They say this because they believe Jesus will take all their “fun” away. Sadly, these people rarely make good on their vow to faith. They are too busy looking for other loves. Better loves. Most often, the only love they end up with in the end is the love of themselves, which turns out empty.

When someone lives for only himself or herself in search of “living life to the fullest” they miss the true life right before them. Jesus said, “I have come so that they may have life, and have it to the fullest,” and “anyone who seeks to save his life will lose it, but he who loses his life for my sake will find it.”

The one thing we will all think about right before we die, if we have the chance, will not be about how we should have partied more. It will be how well did we love, serve and give to others building relationships and memories that far outlive us. That’s how Jesus taught us to live. No coincidence. He knows us. He knows what we need to experience full life. He knows selfishness is not the answer to a full life.

Getting married to someone is no light thing, but it should be with someone who you would be willing to give your life for. It is the opposite of selfishness and yet, makes you feel more alive than you could feel alone!

Something about an Arrow

So I had this dream last night. I don't know about you, but when I dream I don't tend to remember many details.

It had something to do with preparing a message for a church. I was "drawn" to a scripture about a man who shot an arrow before it was time. Now, you may be thinking like I was, "There is no scripture like that." Yup... you're right. There isn't one, but maybe there is another meaning to my crazy dream.

Could it be that had a bad piece of pizza? Possible. But more likely God was speaking subtly to me that I am wanting to start a battle I am not yet released to fight. In Ecclesiastes, and also a song by The Byrd's, it says that there is a time for everything. There are many chances in our life that we are able to do something, but the timing isn't quite right. Getting married at age 13, as I fondly remember some of the teens in our youth ministry desiring, isn't good timing. Eating ice cream for breakfast everyday, isn't the best time to eat it (although my wife and daughter might argue that fact), and going to round up the buggies in a shopping store parking lot in the middle of a lightning storm isn't the brightest idea of timing.

There might be some things in my life I am anxious for, but I need to trust that God knows best and when it comes time to shoot the arrow of beginnings, that I am equipped and ready for the battle that the arrow will instigate.