The store is quite amazing. A brand new building in a recently redeveloped section of Omaha. Tall glass windows invite you in as you approach walk along the sidewalk. Then as you peer in you see bright colors and very large, creamy, cupcakes on display. It is like a store a little girl would design, but only with the help of a smart businessman and quality architects.
This is why we took our little girl Alexis to Jones Bros. Cupcakes for her 7th birthday last week. It did not disappoint. Alexis looked like and felt like a princess as she had a latte and enjoyed a very rich chocolate cupcake.
A couple of things happened on our visit that were a bit more impressive than the cupcakes themselves.
The first was the diversity of people. There were people from all types of backgrounds, ethnically and economically. They were united by the affordable and irresistible cupcake.
As I watched the owner talk with the obviously wealthy people in front of us I noticed his kindness and care. However, when the young (and obviously quite poor) boys came up to get their strawberry cupcakes, he was just as friendly, just as engaging. It was refreshing.
When my wife was ordering her coffee she asked about the one listed as “Coffee Nirvana.” She wanted to know why it is so good. The young, college-aged worker replied rather ambivelantly, “It’s just a regular caramel latte.” One of the owners, Mr. Jones, overheard this and rushed to the scene. “No! It is far more than just another latte. The secret is in how we make the sauce. Here, let me give you a sample.”
Then he rushed to get a mini spoon, dipped it in caramel and handed it to my wife. Then he stood there and waited for the reply. With his hand
s on his hips, and other customers waiting (and his employee getting an education on the meaning of ‘nirvana’), Mr. Jones smiled and said, “Isn’t that great!?” Of course my wife replied, “Yes. I’ll take one!”
What I saw in this short event, and as I watched the owners work the store, was a very engaged leadership team. They believed in their product, wanted their customers to enjoy it, and genuinely liked being there. I know they are there to be profitable, but at the same time there was something truly refreshing and distinct about the way these guys hustled about with smiles, engagement, and conversation. It seemed more like what they wanted to do rather than what they had to do.
As a pastor I relate so much of what I see to the local church. In this case the parallel was striking.
In a local congregation you have pastors and leaders and (hopefully!) members who are engaged. They believe deeply in the importance of what they are about. They are not only serving in the ministry of the church for themselves, but for others. They have experienced first hand the richness, joy, and delight of the gospel. They get it. And they want others (from all types of backgrounds) to experience and know the riches of the grace of Christ in the gospel.
Then on the other hand there are folks who are, well, like the cashier. They are there but not really engaged. I don’t want to say they are just punching a ticket, but they are not necessarily whole-heartedly convinced of the magnitude of what they are a part of. They are, sadly, ambivalent about the gospel.
This is where the parallel is great. Pastors and other leaders come along side and help out. They interject the greatness of Christ and the beauty of the gospel. They say things like, “No, this is not just like any other religion. This is entirely different! No other religion has had God become a person to die for his people! No other religion puts all of the responsibility for redemption and rescue upon God himself! Don’t you see, Christianity is utterly unique. It is in a place by itself. Here, see, taste it yourself! He died for a person of guilt and shame, a sinner like you and me! Taste and see that the Lord is good.”
The goal is obviously to have an army of people who, like Mr Jones, cannot contain themselves. They speak from the heart about the greatness and glory of Christ in the gospel. One of the pastors tasks is to eradicate ambivalence. This he does by himself being truly and deeply impacted by the gospel.
I love to see humanity reflect something of God’s image. In this case Mr. Jones was reflecting engagement and happiness in what he has created with his hands and his mind. This is how God made him. But how much more should Christians who understand and see what Jesus, the true and better man, has created with his hands. By his obedience he has earned salvation for sinners. As a result we cannot just stand by with indifference and lethargy. We have to interject and speak of the one who “has done all things well.” (Mk. 7.37)