In Search of a Seat...
This past week we took the entire family to see Disney on Ice. It was a great show and everyone had a good time. As fate would have it, we were running a few minutes late and we walked in on the opposite side of our seats. Leigh-Ann had Dallas, I had Paiton and Alexa and Sophia were under the threat of an early death to stay right at our sides as we waded through the masses.
Finally we made it to our section and climbed about 15 rows as we attempted to find Row I, seats 1-4. On the aisle, I noticed the number 20 so I just figured this was a continuation of Murphy’s Law. I led the expedition through the dark arena, down the row with mom, kids and bags in tow. There was one person in one of the four seats and she was in seat number 1. As I got close to her she stood up and moved into the aisle so I sat down along with everyone else assuming that she had occupied the wrong seat.
It was at this point that she looked at me and said, “I think you are in my seat.” I had sat in her seat without saying anything because I assumed she was in the wrong seat. I said, “Section 240 – seat 1.” She then pointed to the numbers behind us and said, “This is section 239.” If I could have sunk into the concrete and escaped the moment, I would have. All I could say was “I am so sorry” and then had to tell Leigh-Ann we were in the wrong seats so we had to raise the entire entourage. We moved up to an empty row right above us, then I got to thinking that someone else was going to come and kick us out of there so we ended moving for the third time over to our correct seats.
Once we were settled we had a great time. Even Paiton was into the show until she fell asleep sitting up. We told them up front that we couldn’t use the restroom because of our adult to kid ratio. We also told them that we wouldn’t be purchasing any of the favorites: cotton candy, peanuts, etc. So when the vendors came by with cotton candy and a hat for 10 dollars, I assumed we would be covered from having to go through the entire embarrassing process of saying “NO!”
We were right about having to say, “NO”, we were wrong about embarrassing. The people in front of us dropped 20 dollars on two bags of cotton candy and hats. The girls eyes were huge and they said (loud enough for the entire section to hear), “what a waste of money.” It didn’t stop there, “Daddy, can you believe people throw money away like that?”
Even though I had put my fingers to my lips and quietly said, SHHHH, the damage had been done. Leigh-Ann and I were unable to hold back our laughter and Leigh-Ann took the opportunity to let me know they were my daughters. I will happily claim them!
As I think through this scenario, I am struck by the fact that our values can sound very different when interpreted in different contexts. If we were home and discussing the decision to spend 10 dollars on cotton candy, we would not think twice about our values. However in a context where hundreds of people were spending the money we felt embarrassed because we did not want to force our financial values on anyone else.
When it comes to the biggest issues of our lives, we have good reasons for our values and in turn can become very passionate about those values. The Resurrection of Jesus is the axis upon which our entire faith hinges. Last Sunday we discussed 1 Corinthians 15 in which Paul states in verses 14-17, “And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.”
So how does our faith in the bodily Resurrection of Jesus relate to the culture we are in today? In addition, how vocal should we be with our faith considering the fact that many people around us do not hold to the same value system?
This Sunday, I hope to be able to give some direction for all of us as we pursue God’s will for us in not only accepting the fact of the Resurrection, but also communicating this truth with others. In the meantime, I hope I never steal anyone’s seat again.
Finally we made it to our section and climbed about 15 rows as we attempted to find Row I, seats 1-4. On the aisle, I noticed the number 20 so I just figured this was a continuation of Murphy’s Law. I led the expedition through the dark arena, down the row with mom, kids and bags in tow. There was one person in one of the four seats and she was in seat number 1. As I got close to her she stood up and moved into the aisle so I sat down along with everyone else assuming that she had occupied the wrong seat.
It was at this point that she looked at me and said, “I think you are in my seat.” I had sat in her seat without saying anything because I assumed she was in the wrong seat. I said, “Section 240 – seat 1.” She then pointed to the numbers behind us and said, “This is section 239.” If I could have sunk into the concrete and escaped the moment, I would have. All I could say was “I am so sorry” and then had to tell Leigh-Ann we were in the wrong seats so we had to raise the entire entourage. We moved up to an empty row right above us, then I got to thinking that someone else was going to come and kick us out of there so we ended moving for the third time over to our correct seats.
Once we were settled we had a great time. Even Paiton was into the show until she fell asleep sitting up. We told them up front that we couldn’t use the restroom because of our adult to kid ratio. We also told them that we wouldn’t be purchasing any of the favorites: cotton candy, peanuts, etc. So when the vendors came by with cotton candy and a hat for 10 dollars, I assumed we would be covered from having to go through the entire embarrassing process of saying “NO!”
We were right about having to say, “NO”, we were wrong about embarrassing. The people in front of us dropped 20 dollars on two bags of cotton candy and hats. The girls eyes were huge and they said (loud enough for the entire section to hear), “what a waste of money.” It didn’t stop there, “Daddy, can you believe people throw money away like that?”
Even though I had put my fingers to my lips and quietly said, SHHHH, the damage had been done. Leigh-Ann and I were unable to hold back our laughter and Leigh-Ann took the opportunity to let me know they were my daughters. I will happily claim them!
As I think through this scenario, I am struck by the fact that our values can sound very different when interpreted in different contexts. If we were home and discussing the decision to spend 10 dollars on cotton candy, we would not think twice about our values. However in a context where hundreds of people were spending the money we felt embarrassed because we did not want to force our financial values on anyone else.
When it comes to the biggest issues of our lives, we have good reasons for our values and in turn can become very passionate about those values. The Resurrection of Jesus is the axis upon which our entire faith hinges. Last Sunday we discussed 1 Corinthians 15 in which Paul states in verses 14-17, “And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.”
So how does our faith in the bodily Resurrection of Jesus relate to the culture we are in today? In addition, how vocal should we be with our faith considering the fact that many people around us do not hold to the same value system?
This Sunday, I hope to be able to give some direction for all of us as we pursue God’s will for us in not only accepting the fact of the Resurrection, but also communicating this truth with others. In the meantime, I hope I never steal anyone’s seat again.
posted by Admin at
12:53 PM
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