Saturday, July 25, 2009

Who Do You Belong To?

(I know. The title of this entry is grammatical incorrect. Still, it works, right?)

T-shirts have become a way of saying something about who we are...where we are from...the school we attended...our favorite teams. It's certainly not as high-tech as Facebook or Twitter but it is a way of communicating. Saying something to the world about who we are.

My t-shirt collection is heavy on Duke University and Indiana University. One of my favorites, though, is a very soft, 100% cotton shirt that has blue shoulders and an ivory front and back. The message on the shirt simply says PROPERTY of JP CHASE.

Two of our three sons, along with one of our two daughters in law, work for that particular bank. So I can't remember who gave the shirt to me.

I was wearing this shirt -which is really more than a t-shirt- when I walked into a Columbus, Ohio pizza place yesterday evening. It's a real simple little place. A woman behind the counter looked at me and said, "You must owe them so much money they own you!"

I smiled and said, "No, not really. Actually, I'm a Chrisitian so I belong to God." I paid for the pizza and left.

Funny, you know. I've thought about that before. I've wondered about the wisdom of any of us walking around with clothing that seems to indicate we belong to a company like Nike or JP Chase. Or that we are the property of some school's athletic department.

I like the shirt. I may wear it again...but I wonder if it is a good thing to walk around casually announcing that I belong to any one particular company.

Interesting. I wear a cross...around my neck and under my clothing. The bank thing...the name of IU or Duke or the Mucky Duck restaurant? Those are on the outside for the world to see!

1 comment:

BJson said...

The cross vs. the t-shirt(s)... while I accept the challenge you bring forth, I question, how will I have to change - to use God fully - to act/speak/be the messenger of the cross of Christ when I wear my cross where others can see it.?