It's Just What We Do

The sun is setting and the temperature is dropping into the 50s with the wind blowing in from the north. Perfect time for a snowball. As I sat and savored every bite of my stuffed praline snowball, I wondered out loud, "Where else would this be normal?" There are a lot of things about living in the New Orleans area that produce that reaction. Most of them bring a smile to my face. The way we find a reason to celebrate anything, even if it doesn't make sense. The way we turn our noses up to Starbucks because we already know what good coffee is all about. The fact that we're geographically in the South but don't drink sweet tea. The fact that we actually believe King Cake is some sort of confectionery masterpiece.

I could spend all day listing things that make life what it is in New Orleans but don't make sense anywhere else. I could spend double that trying in vain to explain why we do these things. Honestly, we don't know ourselves. It's just what we do. The best thing in all of this is that with all our cultural triumphs, oddities and downfalls, Christ loves New Orleans. This is the driving theme in our outreach as we rapidly approach Mardi Gras. There will be many who come to our city during this time, claiming to represent Christ, with the message "God hates you." They'll be in our people's faces with bullhorns and signs driving them further and further away from the truth because they fail to understand the heart of the Gospel.

Do people sin during Mardi Gras? You better believe it and so do I. Does sin offend a holy God? More than we can possibly understand. Is God's wrath for their sin justified? Without a doubt. Is there a way to avoid God's wrath? PRAISE GOD YES! A way was provided out of love and it is out of love that we must reach out to New Orleans during Mardi Gras (and any time for that matter). Believe it of not, we actually show up at parades and help people have a good time. We give them food and water, clean places to use the restroom and chairs to rest their feet. We play with their children and serve hot chocolate when it gets cold. Do we confront sin? Yes we do, but it's done from a place of love, the same way Christ provided our salvation. We love New Orleans because Christ loves New Orleans and died for her. Our intent is to make that love known because it's just what we do. It's what we must do.