Church Planting and McDonald's

Ray Kroc was the genius who grew McDonald's from a family hamburger joint into a multi-national, multi-billion dollar franchise. He was an aggressive business man with a powerful vision for growth and expansion. While the company had already grown into a major corporation, Kroc wanted more. To find areas for expansion of his chain, he would take his chief executives aboard a plane and fly around to get a better view of the landscape. He pointed out the church steeples and said that he wanted a McDonald's everywhere they saw a steeple. Those steeples represented the families that he wanted to serve. Those churches were his market and he wanted to reach them with his hamburger and fries.

The Church can learn from Kroc, both good and bad. We don't need to offer Happy Meals with prizes inside. However, instead of focusing on a single generation at a time (Boomers, GenXers, Millennials, etc.) or on one particular demographic (Yuppies in the Burbs), we should be focusing on communities. Each community is unique with its own quirks and challenges. No book or program is sufficient to to reach that community, but a minister can learn his community and reach out to them. This is the pattern of the earliest missionaries and is still a viable approach.

Reflections on Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Like many in retail I did not have the luxury of a day off on Martin Luther King Junior's birthday. Management was hoping for a busy day as more shoppers would be freed from school and jobs due to the Federal holiday. I didn't attend any parades today, though in truth I rarely attend any parades. I didn't participate in any commemoration services, but I did take time to reflect on the legacy of King and the Civil Rights movement. The world that I live in is totally different than King's world and that is what he worked hard to achieve.
My store manager and the majority of the store staff are African American, though there are also a wide range of races and nationalities represented. The store staff is not judged by the color of their skin, but by how well they have achieved their sales goals. I ate lunch in the break room with three African Americans and one Hispanic. At the time I did not even think about it, but only later as I was reflecting on the Civil Rights movement. There is one set of public restrooms and four water fountains that are available to everyone. Customers of all races are welcomed to shop without any separation or discrimination. This would have been unimaginable fifty years ago.
I grew up in an integrated school system. The only time I have ever seen a "white only" restroom or water fountain is in pictures or documentaries on PBS. An integrated school, workplace and society seem natural to me. These realities came at a tremendous cost and King paid greatly for his role. King and many unnamed others, both black and white, worked hard to create a new society. Racism still remains and probably always will. However, we live in an America that cherishes King's dream of a colorblind society. There is still work to do, but a great deal has been accomplished and that should be celebrated.

Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays

Christ warned that following him would create persecution and conflict for believers. It is amazing that even a simple greeting can generate controversy. It has become politically correct to say Happy Holidays so as not to offend those celebrating Hanukkah, Winter Solstice, Festivus, or Kwanzaa instead of Christmas. I recently heard Ellen DeGeneres state that she preferred Happy Holidays because it included everyone and acknowledged the value of all traditions. However, not all holidays are equal and celebrating the birth of our Savior is the real reason for the season.

To the other extreme there are those who are offended by those retailers and restaurants that do not say Merry Christmas. There are blogs and websites that track which retailers use Merry Christmas and encourage people to avoid establishments that do not use the phrase.

I would like to suggest a different approach. Instead of getting offended by which phrase is used, demonstrate some grace to those in the service industries. Retail workers have to deal with grinches that are offended by things beyond the workers control. There are some people who delight in being offended and will bite the head off of a sales associate for any imagined offense. Waiters and waitresses deal with loud, obnoxious parties that leave a tip so stingy that Ebenezer Scrooge would wince. People in the service industry navigate a minefield of attitudes and opinions while making a very low wage. They often seek the path least stressful and are often operating under corporate directives crafted by lawyers and HR department heads.

So, when some sales associate or waitress says "Happy Holidays", instead of venting your righteous indignation on them simply respond with "Merry Christmas." I have found that often they will immediately respond with a cheerful "Merry Christmas." By saying "Merry Christmas" you are giving them permission to say it. Plus, you are helping spread good will instead of hunting for it.

"Merry Christmas" is more than a greeting or salutation, it is an attitude. Malls and TV specials do not create this attitude because it is not rooted in the external. The proper attitude of Christmas comes from the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in those who trust Jesus as Lord and Savior. Take this season as an opportunity to show forth the joy of salvation in even the most stressful situations.

Merry Christmas!

ajc: RT @AJCGetSchooled: DOE chief of staff: Too many school systems hostile to Christians http://bit.ly/9IK6Gk The article proves the chief's point.

Inappropriate Security?

We live in a post-911 world and certain precautions must be taken to ensure the safety of Americans. However, the measures often taken are reactionary and inappropriate. For instance, the latest efforts by TSA are a clear example of a breakdown of common sense. The deployment of intensive scanners and new guidelines for pat-downs are supposed to prevent attacks like that used by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Underwear Bomber. Umar, though, boarded a plane in Amsterdam headed to Detroit. European airports are not using the more rigorous equipment or guidelines. The actual threat remains the same and efforts in American airports are nearly useless. There have not been any similar attacks anywhere in the US, the only place where these standards are employed. SO, the citizens of the US are humiliated and inconvenienced with little or no effect on our actual safety.

To make matters worse, anyone who complains or objects to the methods run the risk of no-fly lists, fines and jail time.

Land of the free? Home of the Brave?

The US possessed intelligence information prior to Umar's attack that he was a viable threat. Acting on intelligence information and connecting the dots will do far more to ensure our safety than feeling up children and the elderly.

Threats to our security are not going away. Linear, reactionary responses will do little to protect us. Our security forces need to identify and eliminate threats before they even get close to an airport. Terrorists may use biological weapons that would be undetectable - an operative infected with a hemorrhagic disease would not be detected by scanners and a pat-down would only help to spread the contagion. We need to be more imaginative than the terrorists.

We should not have to trade our freedoms in order to be safe to fly in our own nation.

Snow days!

Isn't it amazing how in our modern age a city can be brought to its knees by snow! We have cell phones and laptops right out of Star Trek, but an inch of ice can render the roads useless and wipe out electrical service for thousands. Like Ozymandias we build tremendous works and boast of how great we are. Yet, in the words of Blue Oyster Cult - history shows again and again how nature points out the folly of man.
We spend millions on arenas and casinos, but we can't build an electrical grid that can withstand an arctic blast. I realize that an inch of ice is significant, but is there not some brilliant engineer who can figure out a way to overcome the effects of ice accumulation? Nature is a powerful force, but part of the problem is that we don't plan for nature to do what it naturally does. We seem surprised when a snowstorm arrives in the midst of winter.
Then again, perhaps it is all for the best. We are reminded that we can't control everything. We not only can't control the weather, we can't even predict it all that well. Perhaps it is a reminder of who is really in charge.
Job 38 (you can focus on verse 22, but really the whole chapter is always worth reading).

Sith vs. Jedi

Star Wars is my favorite movie of all time. I remember very vividly seeing the movie on a Sunday afternoon when I was six years old. My family saw the movie at Cobb Center theater and it rained while we were in the theater. That night at church I told all my friends about the movie. It made an impression.

In the original trilogy I was amazed by the Jedi. They were a cross between wizards and Samurai. A mixture of knights and magic re-wrapped in a sci-fi setting. I wanted to be Luke Skywalker and pilot a X-wing. The Jedi were the good guys. But early on there were a few disturbing things about the Jedi. In The Empire Strikes Back we learn that the Jedi are truth challenged. Obi wan lied to Luke about his father. In Return of the Jedi, we find out that for the Jedi truth is a matter of perspective. But those were minor concerns. The Jedi were cool.

Then came the revisionist history of the Prequels. I was actually excited when the announcement was made for the movies. We would finally see the power of fully trained Jedi at the height of their power. Unfortunately we also got Jar-Jar (a member of a race that can manipulate energy fields, but cannot master proper communication). From the prequels we learned some significant truths about the Jedi. Truths that led me to root for the Sith.

The Jedi live in a world of moral relativism. Truth does depend upon the point of view in their world. They do not wish to eliminate the Dark Side, only to bring balance to the force. They can not possess anything, but are supposed to give up everything. They take monastic vows and purge themselves of anger. They fight only to protect and defend. What a happy, fuzzy world - galactic hippies.

Arrogance blinded them it did. Qui-jon could have saved the Jedi a great deal of trouble had he heeded the council's warnings about training Anakin. Obi wan could have prevented a great deal of strife by saving Anakin's mother at the first convenient opportunity. Instead a small child is told, "Hey, let her go. Get used to it. It's the Jedi way to abandon family. Don't make attachments."

Perceptive they were not. The Jedi were so confident in their abilities that they let Dooku roam free for years. They could not detect the presence of a powerful Sith Lord right in their midst. And they didn't know they had a contract for an army of clones built from a questionable character.

Also consider: The only one who ever told the truth to Luke was Lord Vader. Obi wan lied to him. Fear and anger are only on the Dark Side. However, Obi wan looked somewhat angry when he avenged his master's death. Mace Windu was not calm and collected when he faced Darth Sidious. Yoda yielded to his anger during his fight with Darth Sidious - it was the only way he could hold his own. It was a Sith Lord that destroyed the Emperor, saved the last Jedi and brought balance to the force.

I deal in absolutes. Fear, anger, aggression - these are a part of being an SEC fan. Romance, passion and relationships are not a part of the Jedi handbook. Thus, no way I want to be a Jedi. Sith also understand true human nature. Plus, Sith were represented with Dark Chocolate M&Ms. Sith costumes are far better - I prefer black over earthtones. And who wouldn't want to shoot lightning from their hands?

So, join me on the dark side. We have cookies.