Unresolved Resolution

Donald Miller, in the introduction to his book Blue Like Jazz, says he never liked jazz music because it doesn't 'resolve'.

I guess UPCI ministers and television advertising doesn't resolve either. The Ohio-sponsored Resolution Six was referred to a committee which is supposed to discover whether or not our churches really want to advertise on television. The issue is supposed to be back for a vote at the 2007 General Conference in Tampa, Florida.

Our time and money would be better spent studying how we can effectively use the internet and emerging media instead of asking each other what we think about television and if we plan to use it. Any UPCI minister who doesn't already know how his colleagues feel about those questions has probably spent the last three months picking blueberries on the Alaskan tundra.

So, what are your plans for the next 12 months? Rally the troops to support your position on the resolution? Divert your SFC offering so you can charter a bus filled with voters to Tampa? I think a good idea would be to form a huge picket line at WEC during the next General Board meeting. We could march up and down the frontage road carrying signs and yelling at cars while the Board deliberates. That way everybody would know that we are really serious about this.

Or, in the meantime, we could invite a friend to lunch, or mow our neighbor's lawn, or have a night of prayer for all the public school teachers, or deliver coffee and donuts to the police station at 1:00 a.m. Or, we could cancel our cable and send that amount to a metro missionary every month. Or, we could host a Moms' Night Out for everybody on our block and watch all the kids at our house for a couple of hours while the moms take a break.

I realize this isn't pretty and sophisticated and I am certainly not suggesting that we make things like this a habit. God knows we are far too busy for a lifestyle like this! No, no. This is just until we can get this little resolution resolved and then we can get back to taking the whole gospel to the whole world.

Oh, never mind. This is too distracting. Besides, it's almost time for that big conference in Indianapolis and then there's Fresno in November and, before you know it, it will be time to reserve our seats for BOTT. Let's just go back to Denny's and talk about television some more.

Isn't it your turn to buy?


©2006 Doug Ellingsworth