“God loves you”, “Jesus Loves You” with smiley face, or “Jesus Marry Me”. I don’t know. The first part of the message is usually a shifting cloud pile by the time I look up. I see one a month. I guess the Orlando sky is especially prime for these cosmic post-it notes.
What exactly am I supposed to feel when looking up at a God message in the sky?
Guilt? “Leave me alone God!” or “I know, I know, I should go to church.”
Contempt? “What is wrong with the God-people putting messages of mind control in the sky?” or “What a waste of money! How many poor people could have been helped with that money?”
I have typically chosen the way of contempt. What a waste! “Pshhh” (that’s my dismissive noise. Pray to God you never hear it first hand)
Until one day while driving with my daughter Halie:
Daughter: “Look in the sky, daddy. It’s about God I think. How cool!”
Me: “How much do you think that costs?”
Daughter: “Pshhh”
Me: “I bet it’s around a thousand dollars” (contempt has always given me the freedom to make up facts)
Daughter: “I think it’s neat!”
Me: “Why do you think someone would pay to have a message in the sky for 10 minutes?” (Starting to realize that I am passing the torch of self-righteous contempt)
Daughter: “It’s important to them I guess. I don’t know. Stop being so weird.”
Me: “I think your right. I bet some guy was down on his luck, about to give up on his family, his job, God, maybe even his life. And then a message in the sky appears saying that God loves him. So this guy keeps going and vows that when things get better, he will write messages in the sky to save others the way he had been saved.”
Daughter: “That’s cool, you’re probably right”
Me: “Yeah I like that. We all just have to play the cards we’re given by God right?”
Daughter: “Pshhh!”
Adam
Pastor Adam was born and raised in Seattle Washington always sensing God’s call to pastoral ministry. While attending Christian College he met Val, a nice girl from Orlando.