Faith in a Consumer Culture

I have been reading Eugene Peterson's The Jesus Way, and I want to reflect a little bit with what I have read so far.

In the first chapter Peterson looks at the temptations of Jesus when he is in the wilderness. The Accuser comes to Jesus and offers three temptations: turning stones to bread, jumping off the roof of the temple and being saved miraculously, and finally, to have complete rule over the entire world. The funny thing for me is that I only find the first one really tempting to me, and that would be the ability to turn stones to food. But I know right away that my reasons for being tempted with this power are not pure. I would want the fame and admiration of others to be able to do such good in this world of pain and hunger. But enough about my lazy desires for power, let's look at the different temptations and see how Peterson reflects on the current temptations within our Church culture.

First, Stones into Bread:

It is important to note the amount of time Jesus has been fasting in the desert (40 days). So, a good meal would sound quite wonderful at this moment, and the Accuser is starting with the quick and easy temptation, thinking this kind of power would be something Jesus would overlook. Peterson articulates this passage using the frame of our consumer culture, seeing how turning a part of creation into a basis commodity is obviously a great thing to do (especially in a Capitalistic society). Think of the endless good that could be done with this power. The hungry and the desperate could be fed forever, all with just the touch of our hand. The Church can easily fall into a similar trap with meeting the needs of the people around them. Of course, there is nothing wrong with meeting the needs of the hungry and the poor, the oppressed and the forgotten, but we so easily turn those needs into a commodity to be met. We define people by their needs and we use Jesus as a reason to develop a program and food drive to meet these needs, without truly seeing these people for who they are. Instead of using Jesus to meet these needs, we need to look to Jesus as the way to interact and encourage other people as we walk along this way of life. When we purely look at the needs around us, we can feed our selfish and apathetic society without ever reflecting the love and life of Christ along the way. It is very subtle, but we must avoid the temptation to meet the needs with Jesus as a stamp of certification, without first living and actively participating in what Christ is already doing in this world.

Second, Jumping off the roof of the Temple

Creating a spectacle and seeing something truly amazing is always very tempting. Who would not want to see God actively doing miracles at a simple wish or request, so we can bring more and more people to our churches? However, we run into a scary temptation to reduce our version of faith in Jesus to a means of entertainment. Why not? We live in such a consumer culture that we might as well package up Jesus to entertain the masses. I was wrong earlier when I said I was only tempted by the power to create food from creation. I can see this temptation of the spectacular and miraculous in my own life. I want to be used for something big; I want to make a splash in the Kingdom of God. I want people to notice ME. Already I have gone from the good of something miraculous to a place of self serving and pride. It is so easy to reach this place, and we as the Church end up here quite often on Sunday mornings. Let's make the service entertaining, let's package it with technology, noise, lights, and the spectacular. I mean, we have to compete with the entertainment industry, right? If this is true, than we are fighting a losing battle. Pretty soon this kind of ethos in the Church will lead to people saying, "That sermon was really good today", "I enjoyed the worship today", "I found that talk pretty boring". We have reduced the Church setting to something similar to a movie screening, where the congregation is expected to come in, sit down, consume the product, and then to offer their critique. I speak from experience and my own conviction, so if I am pointing the finger at anyone, it is myself. The sad thing is we have been ingrained in this culture that this is our right and our duty to do with all things, even our church setting. We have perverted the very notion of Worship and Community to meaning whatever makes us feel good and entertained. Worship begins with the individual person as they respond to the call of the gospel, but it is fully realized as the people of God gathering together in good and bad situations. Something needs to change in our current setting of the consumer gathering of Church. We invite people to come and take the product we are selling, without asking for too much participation on their part. I know this is generalized and does not apply to all settings or aspects of the service, but I am always amazed at how similar the very lay out of the church building resembles the modern academic setting. We have a class of students with a teacher at the front. No wonder we forget that we bring something to the worship experience as a community of people, not just what the lecturer has to say at the front.



Finally, Rule the World

This last temptation could be a post by itself, and if you have made it this far with me, I apologize for the length of this post. This is something that drives me nuts on the national and global scale. I don't have enough time to fully develop my thoughts here, but I find politics and rule to be a very dangerous place for the people of God. So often, we are tempted to impose our own rules and desires on the greater society by putting the stamp of Jesus and our faith on the message. The problem with this is that the message tends to be perverted and self seeking, which than portrays a tainted Christ to the world around us. I am not saying that faith and politics are impossible, but we must be willing to sacrifice it all for the sake of the gospel. The current system we have in place now seems to make this more possible on the local, city scale, but I am sure there are plenty of temptations and mixed allegiances on any level of politics. For any person to reach the place of presidential nomination means that money has been spent by certain groups who expect their agendas to come first in the decision making process. It would take someone willing to sacrifice a political career for the sake of Christ and his calling on their life. This would inevitably look stupid and ridiculous to the culture around us, in fact, it would be downright offensive, but the truth and beauty that would be shown through such a bold act would far outweigh any good that could be done by cutting corners here and there for the bigger picture. Sorry that this is not well thought out, but we must be careful for how much power we choose to have in our culture and our local church. I can only hope to have the power and strength to be willing to lay my life down for my friend and my enemy.




A quick side thought:

A co-worker and I were talking about what super power we would want if we could have it. I flirted with the idea of being able to heal, but I don't think I could handle the demand it would bring. The tv show The 4400 showed this nicely as the person with this ability had people lining up night and day to receive the healing powers he had. Of course, they were charging for this commodity, but how does one filter out the requests and demands placed on you with this great power and responsibility? So, after a bit of thought, I would easily choose the power of tele-porting. No more lines at the airport.



May I be willing to see how God can use me in the mundane and the ordinary, thankful for the very chance to be a part of his kingdom in the here and now.

Open Theism

I feel good about it.

Competition and Humility

I normally think of myself as a mild mannered guy, pretty easy going, but every now and then I can be a complete ass. I am sure many people can relate to this, especially if you are married. You find yourself saying and doing things where even in the midst of it you are thinking "why am I acting like this". Needless to say I found myself in this situation this last Friday at our Church League Softball game. Now, before you get worried about what I might have done in the game, the only one who knew I was being/acting like an ass inwardly was me (since Shannon was not watching the game...had she been there she would have seen right through my actions). Now for some context. We were playing the most competitive and most stacked team from our church. I mean there is no beating this team. And they worked us. This combined with some poor umpiring (and I umpire a lot, and normally don't call people out, but these people are lazy) and a major but whooping left me not enjoying the game by the fourth inning.

This brings me to my point. I hate when I act like this. I don't want things like this to bother me. I want to show more humility and patience in competition, because in the grand scheme of things it does not matter. So, in my logic of it all, I was upset with this overly competitive team and in response, I became competitive. I turned into what bothered me about the other team, and it completely sucked the joy of the game out from under me.

This has been resting on my heart the last few days, and I can only turn to God and say "make me more like you, make me a kinder, gentler, and more compassionate person, so I might reflect your love even in the midst of competitive moments"


I will let you know how it goes...

Nascar, I just don't understand you!

Okay, I will preface this post with the full confession that I grew up and still live in Southern California, so I doubt I could have any affinity for Nascar, but I still just don't understand. I mean I understand the fun of driving a car fast through tight turns, but you are watching someone else do that. Now, right there I thought I might have defeated my argument. One could look at my obsession for Baseball and the Dodgers and say, "Kevin, you go to games to enjoy the art and skill of the sport, not to do it yourself". Yes, this is true. However, I also get to leave the game, play in softball leagues, and on some level enjoy the same type of activity that I am so passionate about observing. When was the last time you took a car and drove it close to 200 mph for 500 laps? When was the last time you had a pit crew jack up your car, make the necessary adjustments, and then you took off into the race? Nope, you drive around in your VW and Ford, wishing you could do what they do, while I can partake in the pure form of the sport, enjoying what I do.


****Note: this rant is not in any way serious, and I do understand the Nascar passion (sort of).


***** Double Note: Tim, you brought this on yourself.

Catchers and Ptichers Report

I cannot wait for the Dodgers to start it up for Spring Training. We are fired up to offer some payback to the Padres and the Mets, and I can't wait to see it. February is such a dead month for sports. March will be great, you got the Madness and Spring Training.


Oh yeah!!!!

A Day at the Parade

Shannon and I headed over to the Rose Parade this morning with our friend Alex. This is the 4th time we have gone, and it was really quite fun. I wouldn't say that the floats were amazingly spectacular this time, but we did sleep in the latest we have in the past (7 am) and still found some great seats. So, I think this will mean no more arriving at 6am to only get 15 feet closer to the route.

"Reality" TV

It is ridiculous that I am expected to belive that what I am seeing in front of me is not just some edited, scripted portrayal of a fantasy. I won't mention the name of the singing competition, but it is a farce. I know of someone who spent time trying out for the show, only to be told she was too good to be on...this took multiple tryouts over the course of months, and then they show these "awful" singers who supposedly get to sing for the judges on the first day, which never happens. So, I am supposed to belive these people made it through without knowing they were not singers? Hilarious

Sad Day

I don't know why, but I am having a tough time dealing with the news about James Kim. I was praying and hoping that he would be found alive, but I cannot help but think of the warm bed I had on Saturday night while this man was struggling to live. Why do I deserve the warm bed I have? I know this extends beyond what I know about, since there is all sort of suffering in the world taking place, even as I type these words. Nevertheless, I am heartbroken by this loss, and my love and prayers go out to the family.

Fast Food Nation--The Movie

Well, I went to see this Movie on Sunday because I was interested to get a visual look at what I had read in the popular book. For starters, this movie will not be winning any awards for acting or coherent story lines, but it did an excellent job of portraying the different areas of life that are affected by the Fast Food industry.

To be honest I have avoided the major fast food companies after I read the book, mostly because of the way the workers are treated in the franchises and in the slaughter houses. I have had a harder time changing my buying habits of meat in general, and it is really a monetary reason. When I look at the price of organic beef or chicken, I wonder if I can really afford to change my habits in that respect. Of course, this might point to the bigger problem in America, that we consume way too much meat to begin with.

The movie did an excellent job of reminding me about the horrible treatment of illegal immigrants in the slaughter houses, taking advantage of cheap labor that is less willing to report unfair working conditions. The movie also touches on the effect the Fast Food industry has with corporate America and the teenager going to high school, but needing to work at the local fast food place.

I left the movie a little sickened by the images on the screen, and with a sense of powerlessness. I wonder how much it would really take to change this billion dollar system we have in place. Is it possible to beat corporate America? I can at least start with my own spending habits, committing myself to change for the better.

A Chance to Buy Nothing

So,

In our never ending world of consumption and consumerism, I invite everyone to participate in the annual "Buy Nothing Day". It is so simple and makes a bold statement.

White & Nerdy

This is Hilarious

Somehow...

Read this amazing article, hard to ignore

The Evolution Of Beauty

How do we tell the culture and the world we live in that we do not want this? Does it mean not buying products from companies that do this? Or is there another solution? It seems that our corporations have so much control in this world, that we are almost powerless against them...I mean this was edited by another corporation with reasons for doing so.

I Never Want to Paint Again

Shannon and I finally took on the task of painting our stairway and our hall upstairs and downstairs. I say "finally" because the walls have been totally scuffed up since move in day. It was a learning lesson for us in terms of having people renting from you. We should have set up a contract for the condition of the place upon moving out. It looked awful. The frustrating thing is that they kept asking for more time so they could "clean up" the place. I remember when we first walked into the home I was in a bad mood already because we had so much initial painting to do (the entire family/dining room was green with borders on the walls), and then we would have to clean the place like mad. Fortunately, my parents were very generous to bring in a group to do an initial cleaning, and from there things have been bright. Now we no longer have scuff marks on the walls, dents in the ceilings, or scrapes along the side on the railings. And it only took from Sunday-Thursday to get it all done. That was another lesson...actually realizing how big the task is before you start.

From Extreme Joy to Sadness to Joy Again

Last night was one of the most incredible experiences I have had in my life. My friend, Adam, and I attended the Dodger game against the San Diego Padres. If you already do not know what happened in that game, then I wonder if you pay attention to the news at all. The game started out with a bumming four runs in the first inning, and we were thinking, "oh great, we have to make up a lot of ground" Well, by the time we got to the ninth inning, we were losing 6-5, and it was a great game of comebacks and letdowns. However, in the ninth inning, our closer gave up three runs, putting us in an insurmountable hole losing 9-5. After that half of the inning ended, we considered leaving, but decided we might as well stick it out. The ninth inning starts with Kent walking up to the plate, and hey, he hits a homerun. I remember thinking that Kent showed up, he did his job, so can't complain there. Then with J.D. Drew at the plate, I watched him hit a monster homerun into the right field pavilion...I mean this thing was gone. So, now we are only down by two, pretty pumped about the lead being cut to two, but now Trevor Hoffman is coming to pitch. I fear Trevor, he is pretty much lights out when it comes to closing a game. So, on the first pitch to our rookie catcher, I watch the ball fly into the left field pavilion stands. Back to Back to Back homeruns. I am jumping up and down at this point. I have never seen this. The crowd is going nuts, we are all screaming or heads off. Up walks Marlon Anderson, and I am screaming "hit the ball out, hit the ball out of here". First pitch, GONE. BACK to BACK to BACK to BACK homeruns to tie the game. I feel the most electric joy I have ever felt. I am running up and down the aisles, high-fiving complete strangers with goosebumps on my arms and tears in my eyes. We just tied the game and now we are certain to win. The inning ends with three quick outs, not without a little excitement as Furcal flirts with hitting the fifth homerun out for the win...man I wanted that to happen. In the tenth inning the joy went straight down to despair. We gave up another run, so now we are losing again, and I am thinking, how can we lose this game after all that? As the teams are changing sides, I turn to my friend and I say, "Lofton needs to walk, and Nomar needs to send us the hell home with one swing, because I can't take this anymore". It happened, we went nuts, and I barely slept the whole night...oh, and I can't stop talking or thinking about it today. I don't think people can truly understand what it was like...except for the people there.

Expiration Date

I can't believe I forgot to post about this. ON August 5th I drank a glass of milk from a gallon that had a July 20th expiration date. It boggles the mind!!!!

Family is Great to Have Around

Well, I find it harder and harder to share my thoughts on this blog. I am so tired of my short attention span generation. Anywho, my bro was in town this weekend, so we had a chance to hang out and spend some time together, especially playing some baseball on Xbox...which pretty much proved that we are equals at that game, but I still own everyone in my family when it comes to DDR. My sister came out on Sunday to do laundry and to hang out with all of us. That was a total blessing, and I hope she will continue to come out to do laundry because we loved having her over. Man that was fun. Finally, Shannon and I went to the Dodger game last night and cheered them on to victory. I find myself wanting to go to more and more games. Sadly, we miss our friends Heather and Aaron very much, and I find myself getting bummed at least once a day. Cooking meat on the Big Green Egg just isn't the same without Aaron by my side. I will post some pictures soon of our Oregon vacation and of the game on Monday.

Peace out

Fast Food Nation

I knew that I would eventually need to read this bestseller by Eric Schlosser. It was one of those books that I knew I should read, but that it would change the habits I had for eating out. Well, I must say that it was completely worth it. I need to read through the book again, but I was impressed with the overall picture that Schlosser paints historically, and by looking at all the different aspects of the industry. Schlosser looks at the overall dream and development of Carl's Jr. and McDonald's, while painting a picture of the different type of industry it is now. I will no longer eat at this larger chain fast food joints because of the treatment of employees, meat slaughtering practices, poor working conditions in the slaughter houses, and the chemical process in much of the food. I highly recommend this read, but beware of the change it might make in your eating.

Tri-Tip, the Fourth, and Fireworks over the Freeway

So, we went all out for the meal this fourth, preparing three 1.5lb tri-tips, marinated for three days in Johnnie D's Angus Steak Marinade. We pulled the tri-tips out an hour before cook time, patted it down, and coated it with Pecan Rub (recipe from the Ugly Brothers). We cooked it over hickory wood, slow smoked for 1.5 hours at 250-275 degrees. It was amazing, pink throughout from the smoke, and the entire meal was a success. Later, Shannon and I went for a quick walk, and we watched the fireworks while standing over the 210 freeway.

Full load of 100% charcoal in the BGE