Love, Peace and Jesus Cheese

"Would you like cheese on that?"

Talk about a moment of truth. You haven't really given any thought to the question prior to this very blip in time. It doesn't matter if the person behind the counter/at your table is asking about a salad, a Big Mac (ick) or Subway sandwich. 

For me, the answer is almost always yes. 

Cheese is awesome. I am a non-discriminatory cheese eater. My only stipulations are if it smells like a foot or comes in a can,  it is not going in my mouth. Other than that, bring on the cheese baby! 

Just last Saturday, my supervisor Kelli and I traveled to Macon, GA to do some SHAPE training for a church plant. As we were discussing each person's spiritual gifts, heart, abilities, personality and experiences, we got to the topic of "filling" holes in ministry with volunteers. 

Now, this is a baby church, just being planted and doing the work to get off the ground. Their numbers are small, so "filling holes" within their group was a challenge. But one participate piped up and jokingly said, "Holes aren't bad. Just think of swiss cheese. People love swiss cheese. We are the swiss cheese church."

This comment not only made us laugh, but it got me to thinking. We know that Jesus is all about love and peace... but how would he feel about cheese? Specifically, swiss cheese. (Hang in there readers... this will make more sense momentarily, I promise.)

We have already determined some types of cheese are "holey." And I don't know about you... but so are our lives. 

Let's start with our holey selves. We are full of holes. Looking to be fulfilled. Broken. Searching for something greater. Seeking love and peace. Completeness. 

So where do we find it? In Christ. Jesus fills our holes with His eternal love and neverending peace. We can be wholly His. ALL of us can live in Him. Lean on Him. Trust in Him... And ultimately we can become...

HOLY.  This is a good kind of holy. Fully, deeply and completely dedicated to Him through our actions, words and lives. We can live a full un-holey life by being holy. Our original holes are filled to the brim with love and peace through Him.  

So maybe Jesus is a cheese fan like me and you. He understands our "holes" and embraces our longing to be filled wholly with Him... to make us holy FOR Him. 

And let's not forget that Jesus STILL has holes... no, not the ones that are needed for perfection. He needs nothing, because He is perfect. But He himself has holes in his nail-scarred hands. The holes in His hands ultimately compensate for the holes in our lives caused by sin. 

Don't be ashamed or concerned if your life looks like swiss cheese. Mine does. Instead, find the love and peace from Jesus. And next time when someone asks if you want cheese on it, you can simply reply, "Sure, but I've already got some... I have love, peace and Jesus Cheese." 

Life is cheesy,

SGK

"They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak God's Word with fearless confidence." Acts 4:31 MSG