Sea of Faces

I was grocery shopping with my mom a few months ago. As always, Wal*Mart was super crowded and finally, my moment of relief came when mom announced that she was finished with the dreadfully long shopping list. We waited in the check out lane for 3 minutes or so and I was ready to bust out of that place. I decided to go sit and wait in the fourier.

The Wal*Mart fourier: home to the coke machine, the crane game (you know, the one nobody wins), the rocket ship that can take your children to the moon for only 50cents, and the Redbox machine. Sitting on a metal bench facing a wall, I couldn't help but notice the glass casing that hung on the wall full of pictures. I had made a discovery! If you stare past the pictures a second, you have access to the perfect mirror! I had been shopping for what seemed like a lifetime and odds were that my hair was looking a little less in place than I had wished. Primping in the "mirror" that I had so brilliantly discovered, I completely didn't realize what a shallow, inconsiderate jerk I was being. My face was more important than the faces in that glass case. Paying attention to my own face and how I looked, I was missing the purpose of the glass case. I pulled my focus back to the pictures. This case was filled with pictures of missing persons and men and women who gave their lives for our country. What had I become? I was so worried with my appearance that I looked past the faces of those whose loved ones were in such sorrow. I felt more shallow than a puddle of urine on a sidewalk.

There are multitudes of daughters out there who would love, more than anything, to be grocery shopping with their mothers. Thousands of soldiers who would rather be stuck in Wal*Mart dodging high prices than dodging bombs and bullets.
Every time I go to Wal*Mart, I look at the wall with all the faces on it. Faces that were once full of hope. I just pray that the case collects more views than it does dust.

³⁴Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. ³⁵One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: ³⁶"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" ³⁷Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' ³⁸This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself. ⁴⁰All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
--Matthew 22:34-40 (KJV)

You're Praising What?

My sister won a pair of tickets to see 3 of my favorite bands. She, of course, gave them to me. Under any other circumstances, I would've guessed it was because she was sucking up for something. But no, not this time. She knows I love these bands and I would do almost anything to see them. Thanks Sis. But it was the prior statement that got me thinking. The concert is two weeks from yesterday. Let's skip forward two weeks.

The bands I'm seeing are not Christian bands. However, I'm still going to see them. And yes, I'll probably wave my hands in the air just like everyone else. But can I do this for my Lord? No doubt. Do I? Most days. But still, I just think that if everyone can dance around, bop their head, pound the air with their fists, wave their hands, fill in the blank for their favorite band, why can we not do this for our Lord and Savior? I mean, those band members don't even know us. Our name, our problems, our lives are not important to them. All they want is our money and support, yeah? Yet often times we praise them more than we do our sole creator. Can we dance for our God? Can we lift our hands high in awe of His spectacular blessings? Can we sing at the top of our lungs, stand and shout out, even cry with excitement for Jesus Christ? This was the reason for our presence on this land anyway, right? God created man in His image to have someone to spend time with, someone to love, someone to love Him back. We get so excited when Hannah Montana comes to a town near us, when the Cats are beating the Vols, or when Obama is speaking at the state's capital this month. This is all well and good. But I want to be even more excited about Christ my King. I'm getting excited just thinking about it now! Let us lift our hands and voices to the King of kings, the Lord of lords, the Prince of Peace. He is more than worthy of our lives and so much more!

Next time we go to a show, cheer for our favorite sports team, support a politician, let's think about what it is we're praising. Ask yourself: How have I praised my Lord's name today?