Religion, Sex, and Politics

When I served at Camp Alkulana, one of the counselors brought several hundred dollars worth of puppets to camp for us to use with the campers. The puppets were stored in a black trash bag. And, you know what happened when we cleaned up camp at the end of the summer. Somebody grabbed that bag and threw it away without ever looking inside. Because what's in a trash bag? Trash! The wrapper sends a message about the contents that guides people's reaction.

On January 12, 2007, an experiment took place in a Washington, D.C. subway station. (True story) A reporter had Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world, give a free concert on his $3.5 million Stradivarius violin right there in the subway station beginning just before 8:00 a.m. - during one of the busiest times at the station.

Dressed in a t-shirt and jeans, he played beautiful classical music - the same kinds of music that people sit for hours to hear, paying $100 per seat at the concert hall. But here, at the subway station, though more than a thousand passed by, only a few people even paused to listen, and then for only a few seconds. The most attention came from a 3-year-old boy, whose mother finally had to drag him away. Some tossed money in his violin case, for a total of $32.17 for his 45 minute world-class performance.

The lessons and revelations from this experiment are many. For one, people clearly take a cue on the value of an experience or opportunity or message or product from the context and packaging through which it comes to them.

Imagine with me that what is being offered is not a free world-class violin concert, but a free opportunity to hear about God’s available blessings for your life - everything from wisdom to eternal life. It seems clear that, if we put it in the wrong packaging or context, people will discount its value before they ever hear it.

Do people flock to the famous TV preacher’s church because he’s just that good, or because they assume he must be good because there are TV cameras everywhere and it’s hard to find a place to park? Does the beautiful building convince people, “This is important stuff” in a way that they don’t get when they drive by some other smaller facility?

If we have the most amazing children’s Sunday School teachers you can imagine, and the most talented Student Pastor in the state of Virginia, but we ignore the context and “packaging” with which we present these assets to our community, will they just drive by assuming there is little of value there? The Joshua Bell experiment seems to say, “Yes, they will.”

So what do we need to do about the context and setting of the amazing, life-enriching message of God’s grace that is ours to share... so that people in our community will say to themselves, “This must be worth hearing”? How can we improve the wrapper to reflect the value of the contents?