Cupcake Jesus

My son Max is fascinated by the guys who camp out at busy intersections and hold up their cardboard signs, "Will Work for Food. God Bless." We've seen the signs a million times, right? They're willing to work. They need a meal. The sign doesn't say anything about money and they offer us a Godly blessing for helping them out. There are several scenarios that play out between us and the "Will Work for Food -God Bless - Guy" while we wait for the traffic light to run its cycle. We don't make eye contact. If we ignore him and pretend he isn't there we are not obligated to respond because we didn't see him. Plus, if we did make eye contact he's gonna make us feel guilty and who wants that burden? Another scenario is when we convince ourselves the guy probably makes $95,000 a year and drives a Porshe from the proceeds he scoops up at this and several other prestigious intersections around town. Then there's the one where we're not gonna give him a dime 'cause he's just gonna go out and spend it on cheap liquor and menthols and pass out behind a convenient store and we're not going to enable him much less support his addictions. Get a job. I've seen people stop and give the "Will Work for Food - God Bless- Guy" a bag from McDonald's or a cup of coffee. I've always thought that was so cool because there was actual effort involved in thinking of another human being's needs. I don't know if anyone ever has an odd job or two lined up. I mean, that's what the sign says ... he'll work for a meat and two vegetables. Me? I'm probably like the majority of people who scrounge for change in the ashtray and a few dollars in the console and hopes for the best.
But last week I had a Jesus moment at the "Will Work for Food - God Bless Guy's" intersection that blew my mind. My six-year-old, Max, was with me and like I said, he is quite taken with the folks holding the cardboard signs at the stop light. On this particular day there were two guys in one spot. I dug a few dollars out of my pocket and handed them to Max. "Roll your window down and call him over here," I said. Max took the money and said "maybe this'll help him get some food." He rolled down his window .... sort of anxious and excited, like he was getting ready to meet Mickey Mouse in person. As "Will Work for Food - God Bless Guy" started to walk towards us the lady in the car in front of us called him over. He crouched down to her window and when he stood back up he had the biggest grin on his face. In one hand was his sign and in the other was a big, fat cupcake with a candle on top. He turned around and showed it to his buddy who busted out a "HA!" and another big ole smile. I sat there and watched "Will Work for Food - God Bless Guy" with this pure unadulterated joy from that cupcake and it occurred to me, "well why the heck NOT a cupcake with a candle on top?" Yeah, not really part of the FDAs recommended daily nutritional value and probably doesn't offer much sustenance. But it was fun. It was sweet and sticky. It made him and his buddy happy and it had a freakin' candle on top! So I started thinking about this woman idling in the car in front of me. Did she have leftovers from a birthday party? Did she know it was "Will Work for Food - God Bless Guy's" birthday? Did she run to the Bi-Lo and pick it up just for him? What she gave him was so much more than a cupcake with a candle on top, she brought him a little bit of joy in the middle of a busy intersection full of people trying not to make eye contact. They have no idea what they missed by trying not to look. And God DID bless it.

I want each of you to take plenty of time to think it over,
and make up your own mind what you will give.
That will protect you against sob stories and arm-twisting.
God loves it when the giver delights in the giving.

2 Corinthians 9:7 (The Message)

Back to Jesus ...

I know God doesn't take off a few weeks in the summer for a little "me time" ... although I did hear he enjoys surfing the Outer Banks and hiking the Blue Ridge. When my youth group gets together during the summer it's geared towards our mission trips, which is pretty much what our summer revolves around ... but we're on hiatus from our weekly Sunday gatherings while school's out. I know. I know. I've put God on an academic calendar so I could have a summer break. I hope there's extra credit I can do later. So now I'm a week out from getting the motley crew back together and I'm pacing the cage. Gotta get pumped up to show them where to find God's grace and mercy and how to be good, upstanding Christian yoots that will amaze and astound their non-Christian friends. Throw in a few car washes and a walk for hunger and we're sure to get approving nods from Church Council. I always come back with this over-zealous image of what our youth group will look like once we're all together again. I imagine it to be like one of those awesome soft drink commercials where everybody's at the beach running in slow motion through the sparkly water. They're all smiling and hugging each other while playfully tossing ice cold cans out of a vintage cooler to quench their adolescent thirst. Then later when they're all tired and tanned, they gather 'round a campfire to talk about their relationship with Christ and how they're going to make the world a better place. And I'm 10 years younger and play the guitar and do speaking engagements. Darn those soft drink commercials for getting my hopes up.
The fact is I'm anxious and excited. I've got a captive audience and I don't want to screw it up. The captive audience changes on a weekly basis; the apathetic, the enthusiastic, the begrudged, the theology scholar, the bored, the texter, the talker, the broken, the confused and the lost. The thing is they all need to have their souls fed one way or another. I pray I find ways to inspire and keep them in tune. So while I pour through books with titles like "Christian Object Lessons with Jell-O" and "How to Make Jesus Exciting for Teens" ... I look forward to another year of running in slow motion through the sparkly water.

Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get,
every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet.
Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them.
You'll need them throughout your life. God's Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way,
prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters.
Keep your eyes open. Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

-- Ephesians 11:13-18 The Message