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August 11, 2010
Oh, Snap--Livin' the Dream
When you get so fed up you don't know what you'll say ...
Every once in a while, a post on a blog that I read elsewhere is so irresistible, I have to share it with you. This one comes from Mike Cope, one of my favorite minister-writers, from his PreacherMike.com blog. He riffs on the recent news story of the flight attendant who lost his cool with a couple of, uh, demanding passengers. And some of the comments on Mike's blog are priceless. We'll share one just to whet your appetite and encourage you to visit Mike's site. But let us read your comments here, too.
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by Mike
Come on — tell me you haven’t fantasized about this before. You’ve preached one last sermon . . . or seen one last patient . . . or attended one last sales meeting . . . or held one more parent conference — and something sent you over the line. You snapped. What do you do?
Here’s one possibility:
On Monday, a JetBlue attendant named Steven Slater snapped on the tarmac at Kennedy International Airport, the authorities said.
After a dispute with a passenger who stood to fetch his luggage too soon on a full flight just in from Pittsburgh, Mr. Slater, a career flight attendant, had had enough.
He got on the intercom, let loose a string of invective, pulled the lever that activates the emergency-evacuation chute and slid down, making a dramatic exit not only from the plane but, one imagines, also his airline career.
On his way out the door, he paused to grab a beer from the beverage cart. Then he ran to the employee parking lot and drove off, the authorities said.
Gotta love that he stopped for a beer. He’s figuring that his services won’t be needed again, so why not celebrate with a Heineken on the way out?
What’s your chute escape fantasy?
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Okay, so that's what Mike posted. One commenter was someone named Jake. And I'll give you three guesses what Jake does for a living. And the first two don't count.
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by Jake
I stand up on Sunday morning and say this:
“I know the leaders have been agonizing on the failure of this church to grow for the last few years. You’re wondering what model we need: WillowCreek, Saddleback, Gateway, etc. I have bad news. There is no new model. Changing youth ministers won’t help. Sending everyone on staff to a big event won’t do it. The truth is that we’re unwilling to change while our community has changed dramatically. We’re acting like it’s 1960, except that after our obsessing on worship, that tiny aspect of our lives now looks different. But we’re sitting on our butts wanting to be served, rather than joining God in his mission in our community. It’s not the community we had, and the old community isn’t coming back. We’ve drawn in the bridge and complained about those around us. Meanwhile, Jesus waits for us on the other side of the moat. But, hey, I’ve suggested this before and no one seems interested. It’s much easier to think a new minister, a new worship style will “fix” everything– with the same old worldview, same old threadbare theology, and same old isolation. So, right now I’m saying I love you, God loves you, and good luck.”
Then I walk down the center aisle, set my brand-new-cool wireless mic on the back pew, and head out to the local bar to have a cold one with Jesus.
Not that I’ve thought about it.
Comments
Jake needs "good luck" finding a church where he can get his pay out of the offering plate and a large percentage of the saints don't sit on their butts wanting to be served. Is there such a place in the hundreds of thousands of churches in our nation where hired leaders are reproductive, giving away their ministry to others, actually leading by example, not just leading by lecturing? Good luck.
System change is required. The oldest one is largely untried. It's said to be only for those with authority issues, etc. It won't be popular for leaders who think market place work is secular stuff or saints who want a weekly platform performance. Until we "throw off the things that hinder and the sin that easily entangles" we're stuck with just luck. The race marked out will have to wait.
Posted By: Tim | August 12, 2010 3:23 PM
I read today that several passengers, not just the ones involved in the dispute, are saying the flight attendant was agitated and rude even as passengers were boarding. Sounds like he was having a really bad day long before the dispute with the two passengers that caused him to snap.
Hmmm. Once again, it's always satisfying to snap, but it usually says more about us than it does the situation that prompts it.
Posted By: jarrod | August 13, 2010 9:43 AM
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