Our Story @ YourName

A few weeks ago Kari and I had set out to find a place to eat after church on Sunday. Kari was craving.... you guessed it Chick-Fil-A. Of course being the great Fiancee that I am, I drove her to Chick-Fil-A. As we pulled into the parking-lot we quickly noticed that it wasn't open. This was a dead give-away because the lot was blocked off by little orange cones. We both realized at that moment, "Oh, it's Sunday". Everyone not living under a rock knows that Chick-Fil-A is closed on Sundays. What happened to us there? What were we thinking? I've known for years not to go to Chick-Fil-A on Sunday.

Today there are more people on earth than there has ever been. (To our Knowledge) This has some dramatic effects on the way people live these days. Now there are seven billion people here that are all competing for the same things. One of those things is attention. Another one of those things is business. Even more importantly one of those things is Love. Unfortunately today everything is a commodity. Everything has a value, whether it is a physical property or intellectual property. I live in a capitalist society where the ultimate idea of success for a business is me showing up on their doorstep with money, willing to buy their product. As Kari and I sat there in the car that Sunday, I couldn't help but think: I am here, I have money, I want your product. You see I felt entitled to Chick-Fil-A's product. What's interesting is that I did get a product that day, it wasn't a chicken sandwich, but instead I got a reminder of how God intended us to live our lives.

There is a dilemma today. How do we measure success in ministry? On one hand there are more "Christians" on earth than there have ever been before. On the other hand there are more non-Christians on earth than there have ever been as well. Just like everything else, Christianity is a commodity. In my eyes every single one of the people on earth is a child of God and has a place in the story of God, whether they believe in Him or not. The problem is that even the 2.1 billion believers have forgotten the way God has told them to live.

Kari and I have made very little attempt to keep a sabbath and to set it apart from the other days. This makes me just like everyone else. I am competing everyday from the time I wake up, until I write my last tweet at night, I am competing for something with someone. It was good to just go to church tonight with a group of ten people huddled around in metal chairs. Half of us were pastors, which made for a great bible discussion, but something else happened. I set aside everything that had been important to me to give that time to God and to share it with fellow Christians. First the 2.1 Billion must wake up and remember who they are, and live how we were taught to live. God did not intend for us to be a commodity to be traded like chicken sandwiches. Take a break from the competition. Take a break from your social network. Take a break from that "Rat Race". Take a break to be who you say you are!

Once we do the work of "remembering who we are" thus remembering who our father is, we can truly show the other 5 billion people who they are and thus who their father is! I am not saying that if you take Sunday off, that you are going to save the world. I do want you to know this. When you take the time to put everything else aside and reflect on your story with God and his people, you find out who you really are. That's our story. We are who he created us to be! I really enjoyed writing this blog today. I can't wait to hear from all of you! Until next time -Just Jon