Random Chronicle: Barstool Theology 101

BARSTOOL THEOLOGY 101

During my younger years, it was not uncommon to find me "chillin'" on a stool in one of the local bars with a drink in hand.  Though many would say that I flushed away my youth in a haze of alcohol and hangovers, those years actually cultivated a vision for my life, my ministry, and my church.  Keep in mind that a little manure fertilizes and produces the most abundant crops so what is waste to one person is pure possibility to another.  In light of that, one night with a little bit of liquor—okay, a LOT of liquor—in my system, I remember asking myself, "Why do people go to the bars?"  Of course this type of a question is usually rhetorical and only asked by dedicated teetotalers.  But as a result of being on the heavy side up after ingesting a substantial amount of alcohol, I sometimes sought out the deeper questions and the meaning of life.  "Why do people go to bars?" What a question!  I have no defense for the wanderings of my inebriated mind—I was drunk!  Maybe the answer wouldn't shake the world on its axis but my rhetorical sarcasm gradually became a real and illuminating pursuit of truth even after I sobered up.

Now before you commit me to an asylum or throw your hands up and call me a hopeless heretic, hear me out. The church can learn a thing or two from the local bar.  Sometimes we, the church, think that we have life and ministry all figured out but as long as there are still lost and lonely people in the community outside of the church, we still have a lot to learn about reaching them.  As the body of Christ, we should turn our focus to the needs of those who swear to never enter our doors.  In order to do that, we should meet people right where they are and take a good hard look at what draws them in relationship with others. 

            So let's take the perspective of one sitting on the corner barstool in a local tavern.  Why DO people go to bars?  A few of the obvious reasons are to drink, to listen to the music, to socialize with friends, and to dance. Now let's dig a little deeper.  What causes a person to be a "regular" at a particular bar?  Why would YOU be a regular customer?  The first motivation is that it's the local "hot spot" where your friends or people just like you hang out.  The music is good, the atmosphere is relaxed, and you don't have to dress up to feel welcomed.  You can be yourself.  Is there anything honestly wrong with any one of those motivators?  Barstool lesson number one was only the beginning as we broke down the barriers that keep the lost outside the doors of my church. We must create an atmosphere that is relaxed for the average stranger.  The church should not only be accessible to those who have the proper clothes or the proper "Christian" look.  The church community must invite people to come just as they are.  You shouldn't have to fluff up, puff up, or make up just to get inside.  We should welcome people just as they are, naked of all facades and pretenses.

            Barstool lesson number two is that the church must purposefully get to know each other and every person that walks through the doors.  One of the biggest myths about bars is that customers go there every night to meet new people.  They may not know anyone the first time they go but they keep coming back because they find friends.  Most of us have often seen the reruns of the old sitcom "Cheers."  Can't you hear the theme song now? ...Where everybody knows your name… Several interesting and colorful people made the ..:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Boston pub a home away from home.  We all got to know and love the egotistical bar owner Sam, the sarcastic waitress Carla, the know-it-all letter carrier Cliff Claven, the not-so-bright bartenders Coach and Woody, the self-important psychiatrist Frazier, and of course beer-loving Norm.  These people became our "friends." We should model the church after this practice—to know each other and build on those friendships and relationships.

            Barstool lesson number three is the mark of any successful bar and should be a strong influence for the church.  A successful bar opens its doors to all people. No matter where you come from, what race you are, how much or how little money is in your pocket, it's all useless information in the your friendly neighborhood bar.  My own church has made this our mission statement.  We strive to be "a church open to all people."  Regardless of fame, wealth, or status quo, each individual needs to know he is accepted and loved.  As the body of Christ, we must make greater efforts to truly accept others as Christ accepts them and love as He loves.

            The final and maybe most vital barstool lesson for the church community to embrace is that we must share with one another.  For those lined up on the barstools, it isn't unusual to hear people sharing their struggles, heartaches, misfortunes, losses and defeats with one another while chasing down a few suds.  Oh, what a beautiful portrayal of Christ's love if our church communities were overflowing with dialogues of pain and struggle and the freedom to expose our individual weaknesses.  In the midst of those priceless and precious exposures, the purest essence of the redemption story is unveiled.  This is the body of Christ…

"Now the body is not made up of one part but of many…Those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.  If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.  Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it." -- 1 Corinthians 12:14, 22-27

COME AS YOU ARE…LEAVE DIFFERENT!