JoBros at Saddleback - Easter 2010
Lasers, smoke, flashing-flashing lights (Kanye shout out), donkeys, camels, free cars, free wii’s, free plasmas, helicopter egg drops, celebrity athletes…and even the Jonas Brothers. This is what Easter means to me. Well, not really, however it seems like we have stepped over some faint line in the sand. Now, I’m not the overly conservative type. I appreciate a good marketing gimmick like the rest of them. I just wonder if we have gone to far. At what point is it all justified…1 soul, 10 souls, 200 souls, 2,000 souls or even 10,000 souls? At what point is our pomp and circumstance okay? At what point do we taint the message?
Many evangelical pastors refer to Easter Sunday as the Superbowl of church services. It’s when the highest percentage of borderline believers attend. They take it as a challenge to convert and persuade those who don’t usually attend the week after Easter, to get “plugged in” and “follow” their organization…in turn, promising to make life better and save them from eternal damnation.
Switching gears for a second…have you ever gone on a first date with someone and were thrown back by how amazing they were. Make-up was perfect, they asked the right questions, maybe opened the door, and even ended the night with simple gentle romantic kiss. Have you had the unfortunate opportunity to find out later that that same person was a bit bi-polar (not medically, but just a bit crazy). Finding out they just want you to be silent and follow behind them 10 paces. No more kisses. No more romance. No more donkeys and lasers. No more Jonas Brothers. No more free coffee and donuts. No more friendly handshakes. No more better life. This is what many feel like the week after Easter.
Am I saying these organizations are bad or corrupt…no. Am I saying that they are intentionally using the old “bait and switch“…no, of course not. I am, however saying that I eagerly wish they would not try so hard to put on a great show…and well, just be themselves. I do wish that the “service” they present on Easter is similar to the “service” they present the weeks following.
This Easter, maybe we could just be ourselves…messed up, dysfunctional, failing individuals doing our best to follow God on a sometimes blind journey of love and reconciliation. Maybe.
Related articles
- Easter Gimmicks?. (greatriversofhope.wordpress.com)
Victoria
May 4, 2011 at 9:44 am
As a recovering propagator of the Easter Sunday Church Blitz I must say I loved this post!