Grilled Cheesus

This post is dedicated to Anne Betts. A few weeks ago Anne emailed me to let me know that the latest episode of Glee was about "God/spirituality" and that " it was one of the best episodes ever but apparently a lot of people hated it." One side plot of this episode involves Finn, a football player in the glee club that is dating fellow glee club member Rachel. When the episode begins, Finn is at his house making a ghetto fab dinner (grilled cheese on a George Foreman). Finn takes the sandwich off the grill, slices it diagonally, and notices that one half of the sandwich bares the image of the Son of God. Finn decides to preserve the "grilled cheesus" in a ziploc bag and eats the other half of the sandwich. Finn decides to test out the power of his grilled cheesus and throws up prayer requests to God on three separate occasions. All three requests come true. The funny thing is, the ways Finn chooses to pray is EXACTLY how we often times pray to God. See below, and ask yourself which bargaining strategy you have used before.

Strategy #1: You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours

Finn says: Super delicious, let us win our football game, for Arty. If you let us win, I will make sure we honor you this week in Glee club.

We say: Lord, if you get me a promotion, I will pay 10% to the church! Lord, if you give me a raise/spouse/relief from current trial , I will promise to read the Bible daily WINK WINK. Lord, if you get me a better job and more vacation time, I will promise to commit to a mission trip!

Strategy #2: You owe me

Finn says: Considering that I've dedicated a week of my life to you, please allow me to touch Rachel's boobs.

We say: Lord, you know I am in a small group, I go to church every week, and I'm abstaining from drunkenness among other things... hook me up brah! I've worked hard, put in my time, and I have earned/deserve X.

Strategy #3: I can evangelize better if You give me X

Finn says: I need a favor. Make me the starting quarterback . Think about it, I can deliver your message more powerfully if I am the most popular guy in school.

We say: If I had a smart phone, I could communicate with people more easily and work on witnessing /relationships. If I had a new car with comfortable seating more people would ride with me and I could casually pop in some Hillsong or Andy Stanley.

A few months ago, John McGowen highlighted that these prayer strategies will never work because they falsely assume the following:


So instead of trying to negotiate with God, perhaps a better strategy is to say "God have mercy on me", and do so with humility and genuine faith trusting in who God is. Look at how it worked for a blind guy in Jericho...

Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus, was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." So they called to the blind man, "Cheer up! On your feet! He's calling you." Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus. "What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked him. The blind man said, "Rabbi, I want to see." "Go," said Jesus, "your faith has healed you." Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road. Mark 10:46-50.

You see the difference? It's not about coming to God solely to get what we want, it's about having faith and trusting in who God is and what He is capable of (Hebrews 11:6).

Friend Request

This is an all too familiar image. Someone requests to be your "friend". But what does it really mean? What level of friendship will actually come out if you decide to confirm this request? I think the friendship has the potential to develop into one of the following hierarchical categories:

Facebook Friend:

The bottom of the barrel. Maybe you've actually met this person before, but maybe you haven't (they trick you into accepting because you have 34 mutual friends in common). You get just enough information about him via his status messages, photos, and wall posts to superficially stay in touch with him. Maybe you'll poke him every now and then just to spice things up a bit, but communication with him is very limited.

Gchat/BBM Contact:
Communication is a result of availability and convenience. You're bored at work/home. You need an opinion on what to eat for lunch, where to go to get your tires fixed, or what to do on Friday night. The other person complies because talking about the latest Groupon for kayaking is far more appealing than working on those dreaded TPS reports. Both parties derive immediate gratification, entertainment, and utility from the conversation but there is no specific intentionality.

Email Buddy:
Communication stems from genuine interest. This requires conscious premeditated effort. An idea comes into your head that says "hey, I want to catch up with this person". Life updates can be exchanged without the commitment to carving out time to meet in person.

In-Person Friend:
Communication is not enough. You want to spend time with this person because you have established at least one common interest.

Phone/Skype Best Friend:
Reserved for only your closest relationships. You have so much to say to this person that you can't resort to online or SMS methods for fear of early onset of carpel tunnel syndrome. You realize you just hung out with him yesterday and will see him tomorrow, but you can't wait until then to catch up with him, you need to talk to him NOW. In many cases you have known this person for a long time and you have reached a level of comfort that eliminates awkward silences.

So where do your friends fall into place? Are you satisfied with the current standings? Maybe you want someone to become an in-person friend, but you're stuck at gchat due to distance or time constraints. So maybe you try to realign your priorities and increase your effort. And many times this will work, but sometimes it won't simply because the other party is content with the current relationship level and has no desire to upgrade. But what if I told you there was a relationship out there where the other party was willing to go to the highest level possible and it was simply up to us to decide if we wanted that? I'm talking about a relationship with God ya'll. We have the opportunity to fall head over heals in love with God if we want to, or simply leave it on a level that's equivalent with being just 'facebook friends'. Real quick let's explore the various levels of relationship available...

Potter and clay:
You are aware that your life is molded, shaped, and sometimes broken by a higher power. Limited communication if any. (Isaiah 64:8, Jeremiah 18:1-6)

Shepherd and sheep:
You feel provided for, watched over, and cared about. Sheep are content with this feeling and either don't know or can't comprehend that there is the potential for a deeper relationship (i.e. true intimacy). (John10:11, Psalm 23:1-6)

Master and servant:
You feel committed to obey, but the relationship is mainly about receiving instructions and carrying them out. (Matthew 6:24)

Father and child:
More intimate than master/servant. You have an understanding of God's fatherly love and care, and feel "at home" with God. (Isaiah 49:15, Zephaniah 3:17)

Friends:
Companions in a shared mission. You know what's on God's heart and He knows what's on your heart. You can be yourself without feeling judged. You confide in God because you trust Him. There is maturity and intimacy. (John 15:13-15, James 2:23)

Bridegroom and bride (lovers):
Head over heals in love. Can't stop thinking about Him. Always looking for ways to demonstrate your love for Him via any of God's love languages (obedience, words of affirmation, acts of service, gifts, quality time). High levels of intimacy. (Isaiah 62:5, Philippians 3:8, Psalm 42:1)

So now asking the same question again...where does your relationship with God stand? What level are you at? Are you satisfied with that level? If not, what can you do to get to the level you desire?