here’s to you, barnes & noble

Last night Kristi and I went on a great double date with Dustin and Renie. We went to Olive Garden and ate some delicious food, and from there visited the new Starbucks and went to Barnes and Noble. It was just a really fun night with so much great conversation…another example of how community is so good for my soul. I learned a lot during the night as well…

1) Midtown is going to be such an awesome sending out place for church planters. It won’t always be easy when people(maybe myself one day?) leave our family in Columbia to go do this in another city. But it will be awesome, and I love the sending out mindset so much.

2) Dustin is sneaky. He pulled an impressive quick one to pay for our dinner!

3) Barnes & Noble won’t let you bring outside drinks in, even if they are from Starbucks and they sell Starbucks drinks. Huh?

4) I learned a lot about the Israeli army and Masada. Sick stories. I want to go there so badly.

5) I’m undisciplined. I realized that every time I go in a bookstore I get in this crazy “I want to read everything” mood. I get really excited about reading and learning, which are two of my favorite things in the world to do. And then I go back three months later and realize that I have hardly read anything in the time between.

6) That sucks.

7) I became really heartbroken because I realized something else. Can you imagine what it would be like to be a non-believer, who knew nothing of Jesus or Christianity, and walk into the Christianity section of Barnes & Noble to try to find direction? Maybe said person would start with the shiny self-help books that litter the aisles, full of combination locks to get God to behave or to be a better you. Three turns to the left, two to the right, and four back to the right….and tada! You’re still in the same crap you started in. Maybe then they would get lucky and find a book about radical sacrificial love by Shane Claiborne, only to reach next to it to find a book titled, “God Wants You To Be Rich”(I turned that book around backwards last night so maybe no one will see it…). I mean really, the chances of that person wandering towards anything that remotely looks like Jesus and His Gospel are sadly pretty slim. If the face of modern day Christianity were somehow turned into a real person, he would be have the greasiest hair, be slimier that a snake and pack more ambiguity than the worst politician(although he may have really white, sparkling teeth).

Have you ever tried to hold a wet bar of soap in the shower?

Thank you Jesus for the voices crying out in the wilderness who are true to Your Gospel.