Coors Light Says It All

Several weeks ago I realized how far God had led me outside of my comfort zone. Like Abram I was being asked to leave everything I had cherished and believed behind. Standing on our worship stage with a cigarrette (unlit, thank God!) dangling from my mouth and holding a six pack of Coors Light beer in my hands, I was trying to preach God's word. Who could have imagined. (I have great faith that the Bishop is not into blogging so this won't get on his desk anytime soon!)
The topic of the day in worship was "being responsible" and I was attempting to make the point that Christ followers are called to use not only good judgement, but also Christ's perspective in all our actions and that we suffer when we do not behave in this way. I was discussing a term I had run across on the internet, "freshman heaven." Freshman heaven is what happens when an 18 year old boy stands in his dorm room and watches his parents drive away and shouts to the world, "Free at last!!! Thank God I am free at last!" That freedom often leads him to the picture I was displaying of the cigarrette smoking beer drinking, free wheeling life that includes trying everything except class. I ended the point by declaring that as wonderful as "freshman heaven" can be; there is no such thing as "sophmore heaven!" People who forget responsibility and good judgement aren't around their sophomore years.
At the end of the sermon we then auctioned off the six pack of beer to the highest bidder in the congregation. It came with a certificate of authenticity that it had actually been used as a sermon illustration and appeared on the worship stage!! It brought in $185 for the mission fund!
As wild and uncomfortable as that scene was, the one that preceded it on Saturday was even more bizarre.
Saturday afternoon I finally determined that I would in fact do the illustration mentioned above. Then I realized I had a problem. I didn't have any cigarrettes or any beer. What to do?
Bravely I drove into a local quick stop store just down from the church and went in on a mission to rectify the situation. I wandered back to the beer section and began a search for the cheapest beer in the store. While I was sold on the idea of the illustration, I was going to put the point of the message, good judgement and responsibility to work. It took a while to determine that in that store, a six pack of Coors Light in bottles met the ticket. Then I had to go to the counter to order cigarrettes.
I put the beer on the counter and told the lady working there that I wanted the cheapest pack of cigarrettes they had. Without blinking an eye she asked, "Filters or non?" I explained that I didn't care, I just wanted the cheapest pack they sold. That got her attention. "Don't you care what you smoke?" she inquired. "Nope, just the cheapest in stock."
Then I messed up. I guess the devil made me do it! "I'm not going to smoke them, I am going to use the beer and the cigarrettes as an illustration in church tomorrow!" That got all her attention!! "Does the preacher know you are going to do that?" she desperately wanted to know. "I am the preacher." I replied.
At that point literally all hell broke loose. Jumping out of her chair she looked down one aisle then slid over for a view of the next aisle. Seeing another employee she yelled, "Sally, this guy is a preacher and he is buying cigarrettes and beer to use in the sermon at church!" "No way!" "Way!" Then finally running to the front of the store this second employee said, "What church do you preach at and what time are your services? This I got to see."
And bless her heart she did see, during the first service there she was in her employee shirt, skipping out on work to see such a sight.
Following God and attempting to make God real to a disbelieving world is an adventure. You can never tell what God may call you to do and how God may use your efforts to make a difference in someone's life.
Who could have guessed?
God's best,
Bill