Jesus is my gravy.

I was sitting in church Sunday morning and I was struck by a thought. Jesus is our gravy. That may or may not be an original thought though it is certainly original to me.  This epiphany came out of what is to most people, our “God time.”  The time in the week that people (for a least a few hours) focus on Christ. That fact alone is very apropos to this blog.

Our pastor ended his sermon on Sunday with two pictures of plates. One plate had partitions for those who cannot stand to mix their food groups on their plate. The other picture was of a round, open plate. He talked about the two types of people and how they like their Christmas dinner and everyone had a good laugh. Then he said, a Christian should be like the open plate. Instead of wanting Christ as just one food group that we keep compartmentalized over there, He should mix with every facet of our lives.

I turned to my wife and said, “Jesus is supposed to be my gravy.”  She said, “Jesus is my gravy. Write that in your next blog.” The wording struck me funny, but the thought struck me as profound and would not leave me alone. It’s a Biblical concept that structures all of Christian life, but a concept that increasingly seems to be rejected by the church or rather those who make up the church.

The question is, “Do we really want to live our life fully dedicated to Christ?” How much is Christ permeating every aspect of our life?

There is a quote from Wilbur Rees that has stuck with me for many years.

“I would like to buy $3 worth of God please, not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine…I  want ecstasy, not transformation; I want the warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the eternal in a paper sack. I would like to buy $3 dollars worth of God please.”

In my most honest moments, I would have to admit that I often want to buy $3 worth of God. I want the peace of the Father without the sacrifice of the Son.  I want an Abba Father without the quiet voice of His Spirit letting me know when I am off track or when I am missing the mark.

So this coming week as I get ready to sit down for a Christmas dinner, I want to remember that Jesus needs to be my gravy. He needs to be in and around and touching every part of my life, every decision made, and every thought and word.