when cars were personal and religion wasn't

 As a young and upcoming, at least in my eyes, young man, what you drove was important.  Four door sedans were out, Mercedes Benz had just announced its 450 SEL, and BMW was still making its name on 2002’s, sporty coupes.  But it was the up and coming, the cool, the respected, the ones we wanted to emulate that were driving the cars that made a statement.  It was all about two door personal luxury cars, GM led with the Olds Toronado, Chevy Monte Carlo, Cadillac Eldorado, and the Buick Riviera.  My favorite the Pontiac Grand Prix.  All those cool cars with long hoods and big V-8’s under them, that was going to be me someday.  Ford had the Thunderbird, all 5500 pounds of it, a long ride from the two seaters just 20 years ago, and of course, who doesn’t remember the Cordoba, the car that put fine Corinthian leather in everyone’s vocabulary, and made Ricardo Montalban a star, before he became Mr. Roarke.  It was these cars that showed us who was up and coming, who could afford the payments, and who got the girls.  While some car ownes bragged of miles per gallon, when asked what their cars got, they answered “dates.”  Lots of them.

On any freeway ride you can see the cars of today, BMW sedans, Honda Civics, and SUV’s, all bigger than they started out, and all without definition.  Various shades of gray, no matching interiors, unless you buy black, and all four doors.  Exactly the kind of car we begged our dads not to buy.  But take heart, as Ford last week announced it was getting out of the car business, with the exception of Mustang, it will be all about trucks, SUV’s, and crossovers.  Seems America has spoken, and it wants trucks.  I already have one, as any responsible motorcycle owner does, but our main car is a Mustang.  I guess this also means no more convertibles, unless you can see an F150 topless.  Roll up the windows, shut the door, turn on the climate control set to your desired temp, push the button your sound system and make sure your i-pod is charged.  And get used to traveling in complete isolation.....so personal it’s impersonal.

Just as we used to have 327, 351, 383, 454, 440, and 426 engine designations, big and powerful, we now have 3.7, 2.7, 5.3, 6.0, and 1.6, all in liters, some smaller than the two liter bottle of Coke in your refrigerator.  Lift the hood and see engine covers, no more Chevy orange, Ford blue, Olds gold, or Pontiac green.  Covers, to keep the unromantic silver block covered, as they all look the same, sound the same, and can easily be misidentified without looking at the car itself.  Which may be difficult, as so many cars look the same, blame aerodynamics, and a buying pubic put to sleep with creative styling.  It is quite possible that the Golden Age of Automobiles is over, who will collect a 2018 in 2038?  Yet where are all the Mustang II’s from the seventies, they made over a million of them?  A nineties collector car?  Please don’t wake me when it’s over.....

Seems the auto industry has fallen asleep, much like many churches.  If your pastor feels he must preach for an hour, ask him why “can Billy Graham preach for 20 minutes and they rush to the altars, yet he preaches for an hour and they rush for the door?”  The answer may sound more like an excuse, because....Yet some time back, I was confronted with a woman, homeless, who fell asleep during my lessons, restricted to 45 minutes.  She apologized after waking up when I was done, my words surprised even me.  I told her I was glad she felt so safe that she could sleep, rest being the one gift we all think we have, but never realize how much we don’t have and need it.  I too was known for dozing off in church, bored, not feeling secure.  But Paul, encountered a man who fell asleep and died after over 12 hours of teaching.  If that wasn’t enough, he fell three stories to his death, as recorded by Dr. Luke in Acts.  Yet Paul, maybe not quite yet finished delivering his message, proclaimed he wasn’t dead, and prayed new life back into him.  No record if Paul went on preaching after.  But he had provided a life demonstration of resurrection power, how many would remember the man brought back to life, or all the words of Paul?  How many came and went during the service, either missing or just arriving when he fell.  All of Pauls’ words would be hollow without a demonstration, and God provided one.  What better way to leave a service than seeing Jesus in action.  To see the sick healed, the lost saved, and the dead given back life.  No telling when God will perform a miracle, I wonder if anyone jumped on the opportunity to sell shirts and stickers afterwards?

Even while asleep Jesus is in action.  The holy spirit never rests, lest he be separated from you.  In cars and trucks styles change, also in religion.  Seminary will say he wasn’t really dead, just as the excuse makers made up stories about Jesus.  They will try to rationalize resurrection power, claiming it makes no sense.  But to those of us who believe and know, it means life, and life eternally.  Forever with Jesus.  Where we die and how will not matter, all we know or memorized will be counted as filthy rags, all it takes is Jesus.  The same simple message Billy proclaimed for years.  Falling asleep at church, maybe you need your life in Christ resurrected.  Become just one of the crowd, you aren’t to Jesus.  The world will try to make us all equal via what we drive, only in Jesus will we be the individual we desire.  Sometimes it takes a fall to prove the point....don’t you be misled.  Jesus makes it personal.  A lesson from the cars we used to desire, do we desire that same kind of personalization ourselves?

Today Olds and Pontiac are gone.  Chrysler is FIAT owned, and GM cars are all clones of each other.  No more T-Bird either.  Remember to be like Jesus in one Accord, not to own one, but one in the spirit.  Alfred P. Sloan once said “you can sell a young man’s car to an old  man, but not an old man’s car to a young man.”  Same old style religion, Jesus never changed.  Nor did his gospel.  Just ask the man who fell three stories, he’ll tell you.  Something to consider the next time you fall asleep at church, just don’t do it at the wheel.

For everyone’s last ride is in the same car...a hearse.

love with compassion,

Mike

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