I like Cracker Barrel but my kids are not real crazy about it. I wondered why this is true? I figured it out this week as I've been studying SEEKING HIM. Angela Mills and I enjoyed lunch there the other day and I got excited when I saw they now had Bubble Up Soda. The time before I saw Frostie Root Beer and of course, my favorite for years has been Stewart's Root Beer. I get excited to see these things from my childhood. They even have candy from the 70s and 80s. I find myself telling my kids about the toys they sell which I used to have and my dad has done the same as he celebrated things from his generation. The type of food and the smell of the fireplace always take me back to my grandparents' house and my childhood. It's comforting...as a matter of fact, they call it "comfort food."
There is nothing there for the next generation. No robots or ipods. No latest syles or newest tunes. My kids humor me as they try "my" candy and as I try to sell them on "my" generation, but the whole Cracker Barrel thing just isn't their's. Isn't this just like our faith!?! How many of us go to church trying to recapture the nostalgia of days gone by? How many of us try to remanufacture what once happened, and, like Cracker Barrel, repackage it and try to sell it to the next generation hoping they will get the same thrill we get by reliving it?
At Cracker Barrel, you will never find sushi, pesto sause, pizza or egg rolls. You won't find anything on the top forty list or styles from Vogue; just nostalgia and comfort! Too often in our walk with God we live in the past, relying on past growth and recalling past experiences. We like "comfort food" for the soul. We want things that make us nostalgic and we too often confuse that with a real move of God.
Scripture tells us "His mercies are new every morning." What new recipe can God try on us today? Are we willing to live today and let the Lord teach us something new? Can we allow Him to create new experiences and memories? Can we share the good things of the past while allowing a new generation to share with us good things from today? There is a place in my diet for Cracker Barrel. I like it. But, there is also a place for new restaurants, new candy, new music, new styles and new recipes. There is a place in my faith for connecting with the past and for sharing it with a new generation. However, there needs to be an openess to new things, new learning, new directions, new worship experiences and fresh revelation.
Why did Frostie Root Beer and Bubble Up Soda never take hold? Because they just weren't that good...something better came along. "Sprit of the Living God, fall afresh on me."
