Stuff Christians Like

I wish I could say that I discover things like this all by myself (as if I was some kind of trekker of the backwoods of the Web, digging up sites like some kind of virtual Indiana Jones)... but I don't. This time around, I owe a big "thank you" to Church Marketing Sucks.

And the thing that they pointed me to is a deliciously funny, snarky, and occasionally deep blog called Stuff Christians Like. For those of us who have lived "inside the churchified walls," it's alternately "spew beverage of your choice onto your monitor" hilarious and "find yourself thinking about it all day, even when preparing a sermon" thought-provoking. Hopefully it will provide some of you who aren't drowning in church culture a wry & honest glimpse at both our goofiness & what it means to follow Jesus.

A couple of samples:

#147: Trust Falls

Remember that time Jesus and all the disciples did trust falls on the banks of the Red Sea? Right at the last second they didn't catch Jesus when it was his turn but he floated because he was the son of God, so it was all good. OK, that didn't happen, but to this day, the trust fall is a staple of most youth groups...

It's a simple concept: One person stands on the top of a ladder or a stump and falls backward into the waiting hands of two rows of people. At the end of the whole experience you're really close and play DC Talk songs and walk through the ups and downs of adolescence together with your face against the winds of change that swirl across us all with challenges and opportunities, hopes and fears, dreams and decisions. Cue One Tree Hill music...

#109: Baby Crack & Veggie Tales

Before I write a short love letter to Veggie Tales let me share 3 things you need to know about children's television:

1. Baby Einstein is the equivalent of baby crack. Seriously, turn on one and your screaming kid will become comatose as colorful shapes spin and bears dance and toys shimmer across the screen to Mozart. The only issue is that if you're ever out and about and your kid hears classical music, they'll start jonesin' for a fix.
2. The show Caillou will make your kid afraid of everything on the planet. This is the only cartoon character I have ever wanted to punch. He whines and cries and whimpers his way through the entire program. Avoid at all costs.
3. No one knows what the Doodlebops are but trust me, they are terrifying. Their ears are kind of tucked into a flap of skin, they are ungodly good at playing instruments and breakdancing on buses and one of them can shrink his body down into impossibly small spaces.There, I feel worlds better.

But honestly, I love Veggie Tales. It's creative, imaginative and has enough adult humor to keep me engaged. The best song is the cheeseburger song, there can be no debate on this point, but all of their stuff is good.

My one issue is that when we went to the "Pirates the Don't Do Anything" movie in the theater, they didn't start the movie with their theme song. It was like going to see U2 and Bono refusing to do "One" or "Where the Streets Have No Name." My two year old daughter leaned over to me and immediately said, "Not this veggies." That's toddler for, "What a poor branding decision. That theme song is an audio trigger that lets me know it's time to enjoy some Veggie Tales programming. To leave that song out was a foolish, foolish decision on the Director's part."