The Movie Without The "S" Word

I went to see The Break-Up this weekend with a group of girlfriends. I can't say I loved it but I didn't hate it either. Mostly I think it just made me kind of sad. I'll try to avoid any spoilers here but the premise of the movie is that Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn play a couple that calls it quits on their relationship but neither one wants to move out of their awesome Chicago condo. (This is where I have to give the movie extreme props for actually being filmed in Chicago unlike the movie Chicago which was filmed in Canada. Go figure.) The movie progresses with some amusing but mean-spirited mind games played back and forth and the couple is obviously doomed even though both parties express to friends that they really do want to be together. That's where I got a little annoyed with Hollywood.

She wants him, he wants her - but neither one is willing to say that to the other. I know this plot line has been used in countless other movies too but in The Break-Up pride became the plot driving device. Both characters were at fault and what I found most saddening was that two words remained unsaid at all the right moments: "I'm Sorry". I felt like if at any time one of the leads simply uttered that small phrase you could cut to a hug and kiss and roll the credits (which is of course why it remained the movie without the "S" word). Not to say that an apology would -or ever does- fix everything but it would certainly start the train on the right tracks.

So the movie got me thinking a lot about apologies. "I'm sorry" doesn't inherently mean the same thing as "It's my fault" or "I was all wrong". Think about how many times we use the phrase to comfort people. If someone says "My dog just died", you can easily respond with "I'm so sorry" even if you are in no way related to, let alone responsible for, the death of said dog. We can be so comfortable and almost reflexive with our uses of "I'm sorry" to ease the pains of strangers or mere acquaintances but the words become more difficult when the hurt is in the eyes of loved ones. In relationships though, many times "I'm sorry" does become equated with "It's my fault" but that's no reason to let it go unsaid. Most conflicts really are the fault of both people involved - both speaker and listener are responsible for misinterpreted words - and it seems "I'm sorry" can easily and rightly be followed by "I'm sorry too". But "sorry" remains a choice. It's a decision to choose humility and put love for another person above pride. It's a decision to open a door to forgiveness. I'm probably oversimplifying most arguments, but on the other hand, when has a humble spirit ever made a situation worse?

Beer, Wine or *hic* Algae?

A couple of posts ago I mentioned a funny article about lovesick swans. It was thoroughly bizarre and I found myself asking, "Lovesick swans? What's next drunken pelicans?"

This article just goes to show, be careful what you wish for.

Unlanpqy, Mykdiv, and Gngxteu

Did I spontaneously learn how to speak Klingon?

Am I typing the sounds of The Star Spangled Banner sung with a mouthful of peanut butter?

Or am I typing out some randomly generated words from Blogger itself used for word identification inputs in the comments sections?

"Unlanpqy, Mykdiv and Gngxteu" may very well be the Klingon translation of Star Spangled Peanut Butter but it's also my brain-dead Friday realization that Blogger comment pages can come up with some really funny words for their word identification function. Granted this is probably the most pointless blog ever written but I needed something a little more lighthearted to post about and trying to pronounce "words" that come up for commenting can be pretty darn funny*. Besides - you know you're gonna try it now. Obnpzao... Nvmxti... Bmsyz...

*If you're like me and qualify as easily amused, overly caffeinated, overly tired, or all of the above.

"The Heart of the Matter"

I don't know quite what to say about a book that's simultaneously the most inspiring and most horrifying book I've ever read. Left To Tell narrates the life of Immaculee Ilibagiza, a young survivor of Rwanda's brutal genocide in the early 1990s. While her family, friends, neighbors and schoolmates were horrifically killed, Immaculee and seven other women survived by hiding for months in a pastor's closet-sized bathroom. Unable to speak to those hiding with her - for fear of being heard by their enemies - Immaculee passed time in prayer and meditation. Many of her prayers were for her own safety but what was much more shocking was how she prayed for forgiveness for those committing the atrocities against her loved ones. Let me repeat that - she prayed for the people who murdered her parents, she prayed for the people who decapitated and dismembered her brother with their machetes, she prayed for the people who raped and abused her friends and neighbors. My first thought was "She's a much better woman than me!" I'd be furious, depressed, outraged, and a whole list of other things that probably shouldn't be listed here... and she was forgiving? It's such an upside down - even absurd - concept to me but she goes on to describe that she felt so much hate and anger towards the murderers that without forgiveness she would become just like them. It seems so revolutionary, but it's by far the most radical, most extreme, and most correct scenario of how God intends his people to live. Forgiveness. For anything and everything done to us and our loved ones - complete and total forgiveness.

A friend of mine once confided in me that she wished she was closer to one of her parents. They had been through a rough situation and she pinpointed an incident that drew them very far apart. She told me, "I just don't see us ever being as close as we were before." Saddened by this remark I suggested, "Have you thought about what it would mean to forgive everything that's happened?" With pain and anger in her eyes she shot back "That's absolutely NOT possible." I know situations like this happen a lot but in light of Immaculee's testimony, how can we claim forgiveness to be impossible? Hard, yes. Difficult, for sure. Painful, you bet. But impossible?? Perhaps that's just a convenient word for "not worth my effort".

There's a quote I heard a while ago and I'm sure it's from some brilliant mega-Christian like C.S. Lewis, Billy Graham, or Oswald Chambers but it could just as easily be from R.A. Salvatore or Mark Twain. If you know who said it for sure, leave a comment but it says "Forgiveness is the fragrance the flower leaves on the heel of the one who crushed it" and I think that's an interesting way of putting it because too often we focus on being crushed flowers rather than becoming air fresheners. Oddly enough while pondering all this in my head this morning, I heard a great song on the radio. It's the title of this blog and the song's by The Eagles or maybe it's a Don Henley solo project (I can't tell the difference, really) - either way it sums things up pretty darn well.

I've been trying to get down to the heart of the matter
but my will gets weak and my thoughts seem to scatter
but I think it's about forgiveness, forgiveness...

These times are so uncertain,
there's a yearning undefined and people filled with rage.
We all need a little tenderness,
how can love survive in such a graceless age?
The trust and self-assurance that lead to happiness,
they're the very things we kill, I guess....

The more I know, the less I understand.
All the things I thought I'd figured out,
I have to learn again...

I've been trying to get down to the heart of the matter...
I think it's about forgiveness.

Please Hold On To Your Stearic Acid:

TO OUR METRA/BNSF RAILWAY CUSTOMERS:

At approximately 4:30 p.m. yesterday afternoon, service on the BNSF was halted after bags of stearic acid were discovered along the tracks. The bags of the white, powdery chemical normally used in candle and soap production had fallen from a freight train earlier in the day. It was not until we received a call from the Downers Grove Fire Department that anyone knew of the problem.

Although stearic acid is an extremely stable chemical, when released into the air, it can cause eye, skin or respiratory irritation. For that reason, the local fire departments and hazardous material teams felt that it was best that we not operate through the areas until the product was removed from the railbed.

We attempted to secure busses to carry customers around the initial site at Downers Grove, but there were only a limited number available. We knew that it would be a long and tedious process to transfer customers from train to bus to a train waiting beyond Downers Grove, but we felt that it was the only option. While we continued our attempts to secure additional busses, we were notified that the product had been found at various points between Cicero and Aurora. At that point, we had no choice but to wait for the entire line to be cleared. Unfortunately, this took several hours to accomplish. Train service finally resumed just after 8:15 p.m.

The problems continued this morning because the crews, who must observe federally mandated rest periods, were unable to return to work to operate their normal inbound trains. BNSF managers worked through the night to modify the schedule this morning in an attempt to provide as much service as possible.

Metra and BNSF personnel have remarked on the patience and understanding shown by all of you. We know that each of you probably had some plans last evening which were ultimately delayed or cancelled because of the service disruption. While our goal is to get everyone home on time, all the time, our most important responsibility is to get you there safely. Thank you for your calm and reasonable demeanor during what was, in all likelihood, your longest and most trying commute home.

Metra
6/16/06

Heart at Work

If you've been reading my blog for a while there's something I hope you've noticed. I try never to get too personal or sappy on here but sometimes issues weigh heavily in my soul and I feel the need to talk about them. It's that time again. For those that have really been reading my blog you probably expect some crazy remark to come out of left field right now that will turn this into a comedic post, but for those that really really follow my writing, you know I'm unpredictable and this time, I'm keeping things serious. As it has in the past ( Exhibit A, Exhibit B, Exhibit C, Exhibt D ) Africa is on my heart again. I've never been to Africa. I don't even know that it's somehwere I desire to go. But I know that my heart breaks for lots of people there. AIDS, famine, malaria, polio, genocide, war, malnutrition, and perhaps worst of all, the ongoing feeling of being forgotten by the rest of the world. How can a heart not break? But despite all these hardships, hope remains and prospers.

I want to spotlight two blogs of people doing some amazing work in Africa right now. Both have been added to my links section but here's a few little details. First is a group from my church and an organization called Global Family Rescue. Working in Rwanda, GFR provides sponsorships to families - pairing Rwandan families with Chicago suburbanites - and helps provide food, clothing, and education to children and job and life skills to adults with the goal of helping the families to become self-sufficient. Secondly is my friend and former coworker Colleen and an organization she cofounded called Brick by Brick dedicated to building a school for autistic children in Tanzania. What's unique and awesome about both of these organizations and their subsequent blogs is that you will not see Americans coming in as the saviors of Africa. Rather you see Americans and Africans working together, fostering real relationships, drawing upon skills of local people, developing resident leaders, and working together for positive solutions in which people can be empowered to help themselves. In a CCDA book I read recently (And You Call Yourself a Christian) and again in End of the Spear, the point is made that doing for others what they can do for themselves is charity at its worst. Developing others to become self-sufficient is charity at its best and extreme kudos to Global Family Rescue and Brick by Brick for recognizing that and putting it into practice.

It's the end of the world as we know it.....

.....And I feel fine!

Heard that classic REM song on the radio this morning and thought it was wildly appropriate with all the hullabaloo going on over today's 6/6/6 date. Please, people. It's just a date. It's a day to give to God just like every other Tuesday of the year.

But like the song says, I do feel fine and in fact I want to give this blog over to a different "End of..." namely the book I just started reading called End of the Spear by Steve Saint. It goes along with my goal of reading more NF this year and even just two chapters in it's quite captivating. For those unfamiliar with the title or the tale, in 1956 five missionaries were brutally killed in Ecuador by the Waodani, one of the most violent tribes in the world. The families of the missionaries then went to live among this tribe and teach them a peaceful way to live and found reconciliation through God's love. The story might ring a bell to those who have heard of Elisabeth Elliot (wife of murdered missionary Jim Elliot) but this book is told by Steve Saint whose father Nate was also one of the five killed. Let me know if any of you have read the book and also if anyone has seen the movie by the same name (should be out on video soon).

I am so cool!

Okay... so, not really, but I feel pretty cool today! I just met Jim McMahon! (Quarterback of the 85 Chicago Bears, "Rapper" in the SuperBowl Shuffle, All around cool guy) He's doing some fundraiser work for our lab so he came to visit us! I got to hang out and talk about my research with The Punky QB himself! ...And yes, he was wearing sunglasses!

Stop Looking At Me Swan!

I really don't know why, but I thought this article was hilarious. Turns out a swan in Germany fell in love with a swan-shaped paddle boat. And I thought it was only in Hollywood that men fell for brainless plastic females!

Speaking of Hollywood, I just got back from LA (...in case anyone was wondering about my lack of blogs lately... admit it, you know you missed me!) This was six days in LA after three in San Antonio with a two day stop at home in between. I'm just now discovering the joy of frequent flyer miles and also starting to pen a self help book titled "Why LAX Annoys Me". Hopefully I'll get some trip pics posted here sometime in the future but for now I'm just glad to be back to my usual state: The Big "I". No, not Illinois.... Insanity!

Mother's Day Advice

With the sentimentally beautiful holiday that is Mother's Day coming up this Sunday I thought I would pass on a little reminder of the respect that Moms deserve. And since I'm a little on the crazy side I figured I'd do it 80's style. But seriously, this post comes with a special shoutout and a HUGE thank you to my mom and all the other awesome mothers in my life - my aunts, my mother-in-law, my sister, my sister-in-law and all the other super awesome women I know raising kids!

The Great Debate

Bienvenidos a mis amigos! Como estan Ustedes? Estoy bien y esta semana es muy interestante. Lunes, en la ciudad de Chicago, habia mucha gente que.....

...What's that? You want me to speak English? Oh. Okay. Mind if I ask why?

Where'd you hear that? There's no official language of the US. If we were in Europe something like nine out of ten people would be fluent in multiple languages. But I digress, I really wanted to talk about a simple little word with a huge impact on society.

We'll make this a guessing game but I'll be nice and give a few hints....

It's more than two syllables...
Ends in "-ion" (pronounced like "shun")...
Greatly impacts people not born in the United States.....

Did you guess "Immigration????

Sound the bells and whistles 'cause you're absolutely WRONG!
But I do have a lovely parting gift for you....

See, the word I want to talk about is Compassion. Funny how it doesn't come to mind immediately when we think of all that's been in the news lately... But before we even consider being for or against guest worker programs or paths to citizenship, perhaps the wisest thing would be to have something of a heart check. I don't mean a stress test or an EKG, rather I mean we need to see where our hearts are at in looking at the situations others find themselves in. It's walking the proverbial mile in someone else's shoes that can lead us not only to the best laws for our land, but to the best relationships with our neighbors.

Walking to work yesterday I overheard a conversation between two women about the protests in the city and I found that their words shocked and angered me. "All those Mexicans are just stealing jobs from US citizens," one remarked and the other one responded "Yeah and then they send all their money back to their families so it completely drains the economy." My jaw hit the floor and only a lack of comprehension in their belief system (as well as the fact that my temper wanted to follow my intended words with fists) prevented me from jumping into their argument. So I shook my head - wanting to shake off their opinions - and walked a little faster. But their words stayed with me and bothered me more as I pondered them.

First of all when did "they" become a "them"? I understand that immigration is a hot button topic right now but who made this an us versus them issue? We're all living and working in this country. We all want safety in our jobs and communities, good education for our children, and for the government to protect our rights. Aren't all of us in the same boat? Is it too much to ask to seek common - which is usually higher - ground?

Secondly - and perhaps this was the part of the comment that most incensed me - why in the world is anyone allowed to refer to this particular group of people as "those Mexicans"??!? Comments like this remind me of three awesome Latinas that I am friends with from college. One has grandparents from Bolivia, one is Colombian and the third has her roots in Puerto Rico. Not one of them is "Mexicana" yet all three have testimonies of being incorrectly labeled as such. Sure the march in Chicago had a large supply of Mexican flags waving but there were plenty of Cuban, Puerto Rican, Colombian and Venezuelan flags also - just to name a few.

Thirdly, and back to my main point, what about compassion? Where did the attitude arise that Latino immigrants have it easy? Most of the so-called stolen jobs immigrants work in are not the types of things that many of us would classify as highly desirable employment. Forgive the possible stereotype but it is true that a majority of immigrants are working in basic labor jobs - housekeeping, manufacturing, janitorial service and other necessary positions that many of us take for granted. And many non-immigrants are quick to gripe that life would be easier for all of us if "they" would just learn English. And - really - is it too much to ask to expect "them" to work sixty hours a week at three minimum wage jobs to feed a family of eight and take time and money out of "their" pockets to learn a new and totally un-phoenetic language? After all there are LOADS of night and weekend ESL classes being offered to "them"......

It's about compassion folks. No one said the life of an immigrant is easy. Let's quit assuming it is. I'm not saying it should be a cakewalk, laws and legislations can be good for all of us, but lets at least quit making it harder than it needs to be. The best wisdom I've heard on this topic was someone who said the following:

"If one of your countrymen becomes poor and is unable to support himself among you, help him as you would an alien or a temporary resident, so he can continue to live among you."

Who said that? Who was this wise individual imagining a society of peace and harmony between neighbors - a place where compassion is lived out in tangible ways? Who could this brilliant speaker be??

Oh yeah, it was God. (Leviticus 25:35)

Cubblog

Dear Derrek Lee,

I wanted to tell you how sorry I am to hear about your recent injury. Although MLB copyright laws prevent me from directly recounting the occurrence here, word on the street is that you have two broken bones and won't be able to play for two or three months. Rules of polite discourse prevent me from describing completely what a horrific travesty this is for the Cubbies. Your team and TONS of loyal fans are crying with you... even though Tom says there's no crying in baseball, situations like these are the exception. Although I'm appalled to report that some OTHER Chicago baseball fans are smugly happy about this unfortunate event.

There is also some mean spirited talk circulating that the runner who collided with you did so on purpose. Personally I don't believe this to be true but I heard some disgruntled Cubs fans discussing the incident on the train this morning and one said to the other "Yeah they [the Dodgers] couldn't win so they just took out our best player!" I can see how sentiments like this one can arise. In my own non-professional sporting career, I was involved in a situation similar to your own and blame was thrown out quicker than Zambrano's fastball.

See, my sporting career is slightly different from yours in that Air Hockey never caught on as an official sport in this country. Despite devoted enthusiasts such as myself, we have yet to experience the joy and elation that this country could know from a NAHL. I have resigned myself to be a lifelong amateur at the sport because chances are even if I were to initiate such a marvelous league it would easily be another decade before women were allowed to compete and by that time my reflexes would not be up to my current cat-like goalie standards. But regardless, take comfort in the story I have to share.

I am a quasi-undefeated Air Hockey Champion. (The quasi part comes from the only games lost being the fault of Appletinis at Gameworks and no reflection of my actual skills and talent). I've been playing the game since I was tall enough to see the top of the table and loving it even longer. Even today my pulse quickens at the hum of a table vent warming up. Such sweet music! In my early days my quick shot hands earned me the nickname "Wild Child" but as I grew more mature and perfected my techniques I took on the title of "Ricochet Reina" (Reina being Spanish for queen and the ricochet shot being my signature scoring system). In the past two years though, I gained my most favorite nickname yet "The Derrek Lee of Air Hockey". (...Okay so I actually gave myself that one but it has a nice ring to it, don't you think?) My slick combination of quick shot serves and non-goaltending defensive blocks earned me much admiration but also ignited fires of jealousy in my opponents. In a game against my unofficial Air Hockey arch nemesis (also known as The Puck Pirate, Tony the Tiger or Mi Esposo) I suffered the worst air hockey injury known to man -or woman- ...a crushed thumb.

Isn't it painful just to think about? It was a rematch game so the tension was already in the air. Goals were traded for the first minute (with yours truly scoring first) followed by a series of quick blocks that kept the puck on the table for the next thirty seconds. Absorbing a quick shot off the left bank I retaliated with my own double ricochet slider that whipped through Tony's goal a hair quicker than his block. He took the serve and passed the puck right to my mallet and I sent it straight back for another score. This was accompanied by cheers from me and grumblings from my rival. On the next play the puck found itself ricochet-stranded in the center of the table. Innocently bouncing off both banks but moving towards neither goal, the puck was lost to play. I braced my free hand on the edge of the table and stretched forward to bring the puck back in the game. Despite my long reach I was unsuccessful and relinquished the attempt to my opponent. Although he could possibly have rebounded our stranded puck with a simple tap from an outstretched hand, he chose instead to use his mallet as a missile and launched it towards the center line and our marooned puck. He missed and instead of a potentially cool-though-illegal goal his mallet launched straight down the table and into my thumb (which was still braced on the side bank from my puck recovery stretches). The pain was as appalling as the laughter from my nemesis. At first I took such jubilation to be an indication of the intention of the strike but later I found out that it was just laughter at the dumb luck of hitting me.

So you see, Derrek, even though my injury didn't result in broken bones and had the occasion arose I still would've been able to play air hockey, I know how you feel. Like the mean spirited grumblers on the train I wanted to believe that my opponent was a sore loser that wanted to make up for poor performance by injuring me but as I did, I hope that they can now realize that sometimes, these things really are just up to chance. Get well soon, I hope we'll be needing you in the post-season!

lisa :)

p.s. In your professional opinion which sounds better "The Todd Walker of Air Hockey" or "The John Mabry of Air Hockey"?

Borrowing... (Part One)

I came across something really moving on the internet the other day. It was a link found through a link found through a link type of thing but this was one of the most powerful blogs I've read in quite some time. I'm reprinting it here with the permission of the author, Chris Ridgeway, (or as we liked to call him at U of I: Cridgewa). The whole thing is kind of long so with the hopes of people reading all of it, and for more focused comments, I'm posting it in multiple parts. Here's the intro:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Friend,

I'’m a Christian. By that, I mean that I identify with the teaching and example of the rabbi Jesus Christ that I'’ve read about in the scriptures. I'’ve decided to believe that when he said was God, that it was Real, and that he used the power of deep forgiveness to start a cosmic chain reaction that is reconnecting me to myself, to other people, and especially to Him.

It also means that I belong to a group of people throughout different times and places who have also been Christians.

Here'’s the thing. I really feel this need to apologize. For us. For some things we'’ve done. To say that there'’s been times we'’ve been really wrong, and to ask for your forgiveness.

This is tough to do, because while the History Channel has been pretty helpful, the truth is, I don'’t know much about a lot these other times and other cultures. Heck, I don'’t know a lot about other people on my campus here at the University of Illinois who are Christians too, but who are part of a different church, different community, or just live in Urbana.

But maybe, just for this letter to you, could we pretend that I was elected to speak for all Christians? I doubt I'’d be the right person for the job. Maybe we could have the apostle Paul, or a pope, or Billy Graham or Mother Theresa. But I'’m the one here now, and I still feel it'’s the right thing to try.

It all has to do with the way that in the name of Christ, we'’ve acted, especially when we'’ve been thinking about how to invite other people to be Christians with us.

I'd like to apologize for four things.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Keep reading for the four apologies in Part Two, Part Three, and Part Four. Feel free to comment on any section or the series as a whole. Hopefully posting them in separate sections makes this easier if you don't have time to read it all at once.

Borrowing... (Part Two)

***Don't start reading here. Read the intro in Part One first.***

1. I’m sorry we made it a war.
Maybe because it’s easier when it’s all black-and-white, but it’s devastating the number of people who have been killed in the name of spreading the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. During the summer of the year 1099 – because Pope Urban the II had given a rousing speech promising riches and happiness - the combined force of five armies, mostly French and Italian Christians, arrived outside of Jerusalem, their main target after being on the war march for two years. The Pope had said, “God himself will lead them, for they will be doing His work. There will be absolution and remission of sins for all who die in the service of Christ… Let none hesitate; they must march… God wills it!” On July 15th, we stormed Jerusalem.

There’s a historian named Raymond of Agiles, and he described it like this, “Piles of heads, hands and feet were to be seen in the streets of the city. It was necessary to pick one's way over the bodies of men and horses. But these were small matters compared to what happened at the temple of Solomon, a place where religious services ware ordinarily chanted. What happened there? If I tell the truth, it will exceed your powers of belief. So let it suffice to say this much at least, that in the temple and portico of Solomon, men rode in blood up to their knees and bridle reins.

And there were six more Crusades.

While it’s easy for me to reject everything they did, to say that real Christians would never do such a thing, and that I had nothing to do with it, let me stop myself by remembering how often I still blindly speak like it’s still a war against people.

It’s just that I learned to use the language of competition and war to describe what it means for me to relate to people who aren’t Christ followers. We’ve said that we should “win them to Christ…,” that we should “defend our families and values” that we must “conquer hearts” and “break down” resistance to the gospel. We’ve spoken of “strategies” and how we “fight” for souls.

I do believe there’s a fight, by the way. I believe sometimes it’s harsh and violent and tough – because I believe in a real spiritual enemy – the enemy that used to be the Angel of Light, and got turned inside out by his own conceitedness. A fallen angel who has only dark plans for God’s children. He’s our enemy. But people made by God’s hand are not.

I’m sorry we got the enemy wrong, and I’m sorry we made it a war.

***Continued in Part Three and Part Four.***

Borrowing... (Part Three)

***This series begins in Part One and Part Two.***

2. I’m sorry that we made it into a T-shirt.
It’s not just that “Jesus Christ” looks sorta dumb as the Coca Cola logo. I’m not a fan of silly marketing t-shirts – but it’s not the t-shirts themselves. It’s that there was no relationship there. That somehow we forgot that relational truth is best communicated relationally. In other words, the good news of Jesus isn’t a message that you can easily print in newspaper unless you can also use ink to store real love.

Yeah, there’s part of the gospel that requires us to understand (head) a message of words. But it’s more to (heart) understand, you know?

And with marketing slogans, even though God never really does this with the lengthy, complicated Bible, we thought that simplifying or distilling would make this easier to digest. We tried it different ways: logically we simplified it down to just four laws, or emotionally some of us reduced it to saying that Just Jesus will take care of your TAM final and your boyfriend. And economically we made it into a marketing campaign.

So we’re guilty of oversimplifying, and presenting messages without any connection relationship. I’m sorry we made it into a t-shirt.

3. I’m sorry we made it into a bait and switch.
I think it’s been easy for us to be a bit embarrassed about what we really believe, and it’s natural to want to make it sound better. But I’m more embarrassed that we tried to make gospel pamphlets look like $20 bills so that you’d accidentally pick them up, or that we invited you to thank you business dinners turned into forced sermons, or that “would you like to take a quick survey?” turned out to be a gospel sharing appointment you didn’t ask for.

And sometimes it’s been an even gentler kind of bait and switch, where we tell you about all the good things that Jesus has done in our lives, and save the parts where we felt like crap, and were insecure, or our Dad died, or we didn’t get a good job – we sorta held back on those, because we didn’t want to make Jesus look bad. Like he’s less valuable because doesn’t make us happy or fulfilled. I do have a hope that I’d like to tell you about, but for now – I if have ever tried to sell you something that looks shinier or different than the real thing, I’m sorry.

I’m sorry we made it into a bait and switch.

***This series concludes in Part Four.***