Ok, I just had a Philly Cheese-steak from Concord Pike Steak Shop in Concord, PA. Whenever we visit PA it is one of Rachel and my favorite places to eat. (Nowadays we try to split a cheese-steak, so sad)  We are also big fans of Italian Delight in Broomall, PA.

What I would really like is to see a really long list of favorite local restaurants, small or large, from all over the place!

1. Name of Restaurant: No fast-food chains please! No, not even Chick-Fil-a Or In & Out Burger!

2. Location: Let’s see if we can get all over the world with this one.

3. Favorite thing on the menu:  Just one-Ok, two if you must.

Before Rachel and I left for vacation, a few days ago, we decided to attempt one of those multi-family yard sales.  We cleared out about $270 worth of stuff,  but the money was really only half of our goal.  Our bigger goal is to, one day, be able to actually be able to park one of our cars in our garage.  But, after 12 years of marriage, and 6 children along the way, Rachel and I seem to have accumulated, without even noticing it, a ton of …STUFF! There really is no other word for it other than — STUFF.

We have kid stuff, college stuff, dog stuff, bike stuff, baby stuff, winter stuff, summer stuff, fall stuff, stuff for when you fall, Christmas stuff, Halloween stuff,  Easter stuff, Thanksgiving stuff, lawn stuff, TV stuff, tubs to store our stuff, clothing stuff, shoe stuff, sports stuff, office stuff, tool stuff, phone stuff, computer stuff, school stuff, book stuff, furniture stuff, kitchen stuff, music stuff, toy stuff, sentimental stuff, donated stuff, random stuff, unidentifiable stuff, heirloom stuff, valuable stuff, cheap stuff, old stuff, new stuff, big stuff, little stuff, broken stuff and even unopened stuff. Well, I am hereby placing a moratorium on… STUFF.

Moratorium: Noun

1) A period of time in which there is a suspension of a specific activity until future events warrant a removal of the suspension or issues regarding the activity have been resolved.

I know what you are thinking.  You are thinking this is the time in the blog where Barry usually makes a Biblical point and tells us to quit buying so much stuff, right? Well, today I am not going to preach about our nations (and my) love for stuff. Or, even how we should really think about having less stuff. Why?  Because this fantastic video, called The Story of Stuff,  is going to do it for me! (ha!) Seriously, This video has been viewed more than a million times and will really make you think. Again, while I don’t agree with everything that is said in the video I do believe that it should challenge us on our God-given stewardship mandate.  It might even make you think about What Matthew 6:19 talks about.

^19-21“Don’t hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or—worse!—stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it’s safe from moth and rust and burglars. It’s obvious, isn’t it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being.

Well, what do you think? Do you have too much stuff? Have you tried to cut back? What has worked on your “Stuff Diet” and when do you find yourself being a “Sucker for Stuff”! Do you own a Magic Bullet? Ab Flex?  Do you have a storage unit? How do you think other nations view us? Do we have a responsibility with our stuff? Are we fooling ourselves to think our happiness will be found in our stuff? What do you teach your kids about stuff?

Well, if you’re not a subscriber to the OB blog you should be! It would be “The Right Stuff”! Oh, Come-on!

Earlier this summer my friend, Stephen Jordan, (who recently broke the 5:00 mile!) and I walked over to Starbucks to get something to drink and catch up on life.  The moment we walked in the door I was greeted by a glorious aroma and John, my favorite Barista, who wasted no time reminding me that the my Philadelphia Flyers had lost in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.  You see, John is a die-hard Washington Capitals fan and I may have made a passing comment or two (or ten) when his beloved Caps (a heavy favorite) were eliminated in the  first round of the NHL playoffs. So, I probably deserved his friendly jabs and jibes.

After a few minutes dissecting some of the highlights of the playoffs and talking about our hopes for next year John looked up from the drink he was preparing and said with conviction, “I am just glad Philly didn’t win it this year, your fans are @$$%*!!*$.”

It’s no secret, of course, that Philadelphia sports fans have a infamous reputation for being… Ummmm, how should I put this? Enthusiastic! Yeah, yeah… enthusiastic.  In recent years, even I have been embarrassed to call myself a Philly sports fan in light of some of the true stories, making headlines, which usually feature an over zealous or just plain stupid Philadelphia sports fans.  John wasted no time. He began building a case, story by story, to convince me that Philadelphia sports fans are… not the nicest (or smartest) people in the world.  As John started making his opening arguments I began to feel like the defendant in a strange and overly caffeinated episode of Matlock. While continuing to make drinks from behind the bar he went through a heartfelt litany of examples to substantiate his claim.

Exhibit A: A Phillies fan/parent who apparently gave his 3 year old a son beer.

Exhibit B: Most of us have heard about the 17 year old Phillies fan that ran onto the Citizen Bank Field and was then tasered by a Philadelphia police officer.

Exhibit C: Flyers fans booed Vice Presidential candidate and “Hockey-Mom” Sarah Palin in 2008 at a Flyers/Rangers game.

Exhibit D: In 1999 Phillies fans booed the first U.S. hand transplant patient, who threw out the first pitch with his transplanted hand. When the ball dribbled across home plate he was then booed.

Exhibit E: At the beginning of the 2010 season, Matthew Clemmens,”Pukemon”, gained infamy for  intentionally vomiting on an 11-year-old girl at a Phillies game because the girls father repeatedly asked Clemmens and his friends, who were totally drunk, to stop cursing and being obnoxious.            **Although Clemmens is a Phillies fan, I would like the record to note that he is from New Jersey not Philadelphia.

Exhibit F: Susan Finkelstein allegedly offered sex in exchange for 2009 Phillies World Series tickets. She eventually got lucky, by not getting jail time in the case.

Exhibit G: Violence during Eagles’ games became such a problem that Philadelphia installed a court, judge and jail inside Veterans Stadium.

Exhibit H: Eagles fans boo newly drafted quarterback Donovan McNabb because they were disappointed that the franchise didn’t select RB Rickey Williams. McNabb and his family still are upset at the incident.

Exhibit I: In 1968, Eagles fans boo and then pelt a man dressed as Santa Claus who was part of a halftime ceremony. Stories vary on the legendary incident.  In 2003, the same man was asked to appear in the same Santa suit at a Sixers game. He was booed again.

Exhibit J: Eagles fans, including soon to be governor Ed Rendell, pelt the Dallas Cowboys and head coach Jimmy Johnson with snowballs at the Vet.  It was later discovered that may of the snowballs had batteries hidden inside.

Exhibit H: in 1999 Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin suffered a career-ending neck injury at Veterans Stadium. Philadelphia Fans cheered as Irvin lay injured on the field.

Exhibit I: The Phillie Phanatic’s (Mascot) head was stolen during a charity event at the Wachovia Center. After an investigation the head was finally  returned and its abductor was charged.

John was finishing his closing arguments and a lull arose in drink orders. He peered up at me from behind the espresso machine and he said to me, “…And YOU are one of THEM!  How does that make you feel?”

The prosecution rests your honor!

I thought to myself, “Guilty as Charged!”

I shared with Steven, on the walk back to church, that my conversation with John (about being associated with crazy Philadelphia sports fans) was a great lesson.  As Jesus followers/”fan”atics we are representing way more than just a church or merely other Christians with our actions and behaviors (although this is still important).  In my experience, each of us have a group of  people that we encounter (regularly or maybe only once) who watch our lives and our actions (the good and the bad) and closely associate it with the message and ministry of Jesus. Some people who have questions about what it means to be a “Christian” are looking to see if our behavior is congruent with the transformational message of grace and love offered by the Savior.  Scripture says we (our lives) are to be Salt, Light, to live as Ambassadors, smell like a a sweet fragrance, and to offer it (our lives) to God and others as a “living sacrifice.” With Gods’ help we are called to live with this intention, not because we are merely “supposed” to but in view of what Jesus has done for us on the cross.

What do you think? If you call yourself a Jesus follower do you believe you have a responsibility to act differently from the world? Do you think that how we handle our failures can be just as much of an example as never failing? More so? I recently saw a bumper sticker that said, “I love Jesus, it’s Christians I can’t stand.” Do you feel like this is a sentiment shared by most people?

If you are a fan of The Ordained Barista would you do me a favor and get TOB delivered right to your online reader? all you need to do is click on the coffee mug at the top of the page and pick a reader! I recommend Google reader but they all work mostly the same.  As I try to get my work in front of publishers my “platform” (including blog subscribers) becomes an indication of sustainability.

Thanks for your support and “Stay classy Philadelphia!”