Searching for Meaning In All the Wrong Places

It seems that folks all around us are searching for meaning in all the wrong places, doesn’t it?.

I remember when they promised the good life just by using the correct lard-substitute in your cooking -- don't you?
In fact, it seems everyone bought in to that particular promise, and we all used the phrase in our everyday lives: "Now you're cooking with Crisco."

And the good life was tied to being paged in the lobby of a grand hotel in Havana, and smoking the right cigarette. 
Remember?  "Call for Philip Morris."

And then, there were the penguins. Remember the penguins? I think I was an adult before I knew that penguins didn't coo.
They did on the radio and in the magazine ads.
Remember, the male voice said: "Smoke" and the penguins said, "Cools."
"Smoke Cools."

Then the good life got tied up with driving the right kind of car, wearing the right kind of clothes, hiding B.O. and smelling certain kind of ways, even using the right kind of shampoo.

I suppose it has always been this way. There have always been snake oil salesmen of some kind -- able to make a living because some people are always looking for a way to alleviate their perceived predicament -- seeking the good life, seeking relief from misery and pain and suffering.

Unfortunately for all of us consumers of snake oil, the alluring promises always turn out to be false.
And so it has always been.
Do you remember Hadacol?
Hadacol promised relief from just about whatever ailed you.
 But, alas, the promises of Hadacol were false, weren't they?
As are all the promises of magic elixir that claim to fix things and make life better for you.

We've learned to be wary, haven't we?
And yet – we continue to hope – for a pill or something for a quick fix – for prince charming,
or for an angel of mercy,
or for John Bersford Tipton,
or for Ed McMahan to show up on your doorstep,
or for a miracle that could bring back the way things used to be,
or for a messiah to lead us into the land of the future.

And it is this hope that makes it easy for us to be suckered.
On the one hand we are wary and cynical about any promise,
and on the other hand we are gullible and an easy mark.

Today, people are finding out that devoting a lifetime to working for the company does not guarantee a future abundant life –
or, even devoting oneself to a spouse and raising a family does not always ensure that promises are kept –
or, so-called “secure” investments do not always yield promised abundance.

In times like these, voices like ours need to be heard.

Voices from our faith – past and present – proclaim that life can be lived fuller than ever imagined. 

This is what we talk about and celebrate during our Sunday get-togethers.

Join us this Sunday. 

Invite someone to come with you – or meet them here.

They will be greeted with open arms.

They will hear a message of hope. 

They will find out about living life to the max.

See you in church.