The World Is Changing!
Now that’s an understatement, yet it’s true. We can kick and scream and choose not to grow or change with it or we can embrace the redemptive disruption we are presently facing.
There is a passage of scripture that Jesus taught that I have been mulling over these past few weeks. It's found in Luke 5:36. Jesus is responding to a question from the religious leaders of his day, complaining that he was not honoring their past.
He told them this parable: "…no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out, and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, “The old is better."
The "old" always seems better, because it's what we know. The "old" tastes better because it has had time to mature, to become comfortable and predictable. Yet Jesus reminds us that when making new wine, you can't use the old wineskins because they are brittle now. New wine goes into new wineskins because as the wine matures, the new wineskin expands with it.
Here is another parable:
At the turn of the century, Blockbuster reigned supreme in the video rental industry. If your family craved a movie night, someone likely had to drive to one of Blockbuster's 9,000 stores, stroll through rows of DVD-lined shelves, and hand a membership card to a blue-clad employee. When Reed Hastings, founder of a fledgling startup called Netflix, met with Blockbuster CEO John Antioco in 2000 to propose a partnership, he was laughed out of the office.
Despite changing consumer preferences, Blockbuster doubled down on its store-first model by offering popcorn, books, and toys, while Netflix experimented with a subscription model and no late fees. Only 10 years later, Netflix became the largest source of streaming. As of today, Netflix has over 182 million subscribers. Blockbuster declared bankruptcy. The new wine burst the Blockbuster model.
In this COVID-19 and RACE AWAKENING era I find myself thinking:
Will things ever be the same again?
What if God is doing something new in our nation and our world?
Am I willing to embrace the new wine?
If not, will I miss what God is up to if I keep longing for the past?
How about you?
There is a passage of scripture that Jesus taught that I have been mulling over these past few weeks. It's found in Luke 5:36. Jesus is responding to a question from the religious leaders of his day, complaining that he was not honoring their past.
He told them this parable: "…no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out, and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, “The old is better."
The "old" always seems better, because it's what we know. The "old" tastes better because it has had time to mature, to become comfortable and predictable. Yet Jesus reminds us that when making new wine, you can't use the old wineskins because they are brittle now. New wine goes into new wineskins because as the wine matures, the new wineskin expands with it.
Here is another parable:
At the turn of the century, Blockbuster reigned supreme in the video rental industry. If your family craved a movie night, someone likely had to drive to one of Blockbuster's 9,000 stores, stroll through rows of DVD-lined shelves, and hand a membership card to a blue-clad employee. When Reed Hastings, founder of a fledgling startup called Netflix, met with Blockbuster CEO John Antioco in 2000 to propose a partnership, he was laughed out of the office.
Despite changing consumer preferences, Blockbuster doubled down on its store-first model by offering popcorn, books, and toys, while Netflix experimented with a subscription model and no late fees. Only 10 years later, Netflix became the largest source of streaming. As of today, Netflix has over 182 million subscribers. Blockbuster declared bankruptcy. The new wine burst the Blockbuster model.
In this COVID-19 and RACE AWAKENING era I find myself thinking:
Will things ever be the same again?
What if God is doing something new in our nation and our world?
Am I willing to embrace the new wine?
If not, will I miss what God is up to if I keep longing for the past?
How about you?