1.28.14

Breakfast: bacon, eggs and pancakes
Lunch: turkey and cheese on sourdough
Dinner: a bowl of cinnamon toast crunch

Mason Jar Faith

I have this thing where I don't like mason jars unless they are full of jams, moonshine or flowers. There's not much logic to this preference of mine, it's just the way I feel about the situation. Like it's very trendy and grass roots these days to use mason jars as glasses or cups in a household or restaurant. Nashville, specifically, is all about this. How pinterest?

Like I get that they are this cool affordable alternative to real glasses or cups, but it just rubs me the wrong way. Suck it up and go buy real glasses. Because, quite honestly, the rim of a mason jar was not engineered for optimum sippage. I spill on myself almost every time I sip from a mason jar. Seriously. I mean, I know it's glassware and I know it'll get the job done, but sipping from a mason jar is so hard and we all pretend that it's not just so we can appear to look cool or something. What's even worse is that nowadays they actually make mason jars with handles, which means these have been specifically designed to be used as cups. BUT THEY DIDN'T FIX THE RIM PROBLEM. That's like getting in a major car wreck and only fixing the stereo.

Let me put this into context so you can better understand my mindset on mason jars...

Modern day faith is sometimes used as a guise. There are people who join churches every Sunday for plenty of reasons other than Jesus. Growing up I always knew guys who came to church to chase girls, play sports or just to get away from their parents (I was one of them). Nowadays I know people who go to church because the coffee is good, it's the place to be seen, and because it's a fashion show.

Similar to how we've neglected real cups as a logical tool for achieving maximum sippage and instead have settled for mason jars that will help us look cool while "getting the job done," we've started neglecting true faith that allows us to experience maximum Jesus-age and instead have settled for the guise that let's us drink coffee and wear pants that "fit." How human of us?

But the beauty is that God is still ok with this. He still works through this.

Whenever I'm drinking out of a mason jar I get frustrated and end up using a straw. And I think that's what Jesus does with mason jar faith. He takes our "this will help us look cool while getting the job done" attitude towards church and gives us a straw that says "I'll help you out with the rest." You might have shown up looking all elegantly disheveled hoping for a chance to catch the eye of that really cute girl after the service, but at least you made it and God's going to work through that.

Something I've learned over the last few months is that it all really is that simple. Jesus and what he has to offer really is that simple. The redemption, the hope, the joy; there's nothing complicated about it. Jesus comes in a tall smooth glass engineered perfectly for maximum sippage. We just happen to complicate it sometimes by trying to put him in a trendy, difficult mason jar.

Praise the Lord for straws.