Tales From the Road Part II: Cell Phone Theology

Like I mentioned before, when us missionaries go out itinerating we sometimes get 2 minutes and other times we get 2 days to describe our vision, our ministry, our heart for God. So we have to have something GOOD, something CATCHY. So, of course, in my Awesomeness I DID! And it worked ... ALMOST every time! (I need an emoticon that expresses my "deer in the headlights, oh no! What have I done?" face here!)

See I have two passions, missions and helping young people find their way.  My job gets to incorporate both:  I'm the Internship Director for an organization that does International Community Development.
So I was toying around with the word Development and my mind went to the good ole days where you took your roll of film into the Kroger and it was sent off to be developed and 2 weeks later you pick them up and what you see is what you get!

It's a 5th of water mom I promise! 8/15/94 night before
the start of our senior year! 

Even the Kroger process backfired on me one time! My mama, being wonderful as she is, went to pick up my developed photos from the Kroger while I was at school, and when I came home, my mama being as wonderful as she is, had put THIS particular photo on the fridge.  This was her, wonderful as she is, way of saying, "BUSTED!" My response, (I honestly don't remember!) but here's a good one:

"Hey mom! Chill out!  That's Julie, NOT me! I know that looks a lot like our den, but you can't really be sure we were the only people with dark brown shag carpeting and plus I was holding that film and that vodka for a friend!"

Anyway, back to my wonderful SPIRITUAL sermon illustration! I thought about how sad it is that most of our photos are sitting in the digital abyss of our cellular telephones never to grace our desks at work, or be framed or given to g'ma, even the incriminating ones aren't going to make it to the fridge. And some of them NEED to be developed, I mean, that one we took together where I hyper extended my neck just right so it looks like I only have one chin, and remembered to place my hand on my hip, thumb forward, and bend my knee just right and you looked hideous making me look like the pretty friend for once... THAT needs to be developed! Of course, some need to be deleted, like the 18 selfies you took when I left my phone unlocked and the ones my mama deems fit for the refrigerator!

So whether I had 2 min or 2 days, at every church I had them take our their cellular phones and go to their photos and scroll a bit. Then I took a poll to see who had the most photos on their phones- would you believe some people have over a THOUSAND photos sitting dormant in their phones?  I'm confident some of those mama's sitting by their teenagers leaned over and said, "Oh look! Here's one when you were a baby!" It was obvious that some of those photos needed to be developed. G'ma would've done backflips to get that picture in the mail and if that skinny pic was on the fridge you'd open it less.  And of course there were a few raised eyebrows, reddened faces,  and quick covering of the screen to shield the photos that obviously needed to be DELETED from brother or sister so in so sitting next to them in the pew!

So, what's so spiritual about dormant photos needing to be developed or deleted?

I explained that my interns come in like this too, with stuff in their lives laying dormant.  And some of it needs to be developed because like those photos it could benefit others.  God created them uniquely with gifts and talents and quirks that need to shine to illuminate their creator.  And on the field, working in the hot sun, praying with a man dying of AIDS, teaching children about Jesus who were once victims of the sex trade industry, these things lay dormant no more, but are are developed and shine "bright like a diamond." And on the flip side, each and every one of them come in with things that need to be deleted! And on the field, taking cold bucket showers, worshiping with the Massai warriors, living in community, spending daily time with their Creator, it lays dormant no more, taking up the space that God wants to fill with His presence, those things get deleted!

We're no different than our telephones or those interns:  There are things laying dormant in our lives right now that need to be pulled out and developed or that need to be thrown out and deleted!

Powerful right? ALMOST every time! Except in that one little church in the country where I said pull out your smart phones and NO BODY, not even the teenagers moved!  #Humbled

Disclaimer:  Illustration only works in places where the people have smart phones with photo taking capabilities, however, fortunately the grace of power of God works in the back woods of TN all the way to the Massai desert of Kenya, Africa.