FANNY PACKS!!

As I sit here in downtown in University Center eating my deliciously scrumptions cup of Campbell's Chunky Sirloin Burger with country vegetables fresh from my favorite (and only successful) means of cooking and actively avoiding much needed studying, I think (aside from realizing that this opening clause was slightly excessively long and descriptive) about none other than FANNY PACKS!! You might say to yourself "Fanny Packs? That's so random..." Why yes, fellow bloggers, fanny packs are very random, but if you do not know me or have yet to figure this out about me, I have very random thoughts. You could say that it is the curse of the inability to shut my mind off which, in many cases, turns in to the inability to speak and communicate clearly thus resulting many confused faces starring back at me and massive insecurities on my part...Case in point: this last sentence...

Anyways, now that I have fully rambled to the point that you all have most likely lost interest, I feel like I should now talk about fanny packs and how underappreciated they are in our society. My parents recently got back from a trip and as I was leaving their place on Sunday, I noticed my mom's fanny pack on the kitchen table (she had plopped it there upon her return, which is somewhat uncharacteristic as she tends to keep everything in its proper place, a skill I have yet to inherit from her). Upon seeing this, my first instinct was to smile to myself at the fact that, yes, my mother owns a fanny pack...not only owns one, but she wears one in public...

Then I thought, why do we have this view of fanny packs? It's the view that they are an object of some joke, like if you want make someone smile or laugh, talk about fanny packs...why is that? I mean, I think the name itself is pretty funny...anything with the word "fanny" is funny in my opinion.

Here's a brief history of THE FANNY PACK... it came to popularity in the late 80s to mid-90s and according to Wikipedia is considered "a sure mark for an out-of-place tourist, invoking the traditional tourist stereotypes known around the world." Now I realize in school Wikipedia is not a reliable source, but for the purposes of this blog, I think it will suffice.

Now that I have rambled to the point where I would be shocked if anyone is still reading (Kudos to you if you are), here is the main point I want to get at...BEING A CHRISTIAN IS LIKE WEARING A FANNY PACK...there if nothing else, thats what I want to say in this blog post. As Christians, we are often ridiculed for our beliefs... 2 Timothy 3:12 says "everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted." It's just a fact of life. We are in this world, but not of this world…God calls us to live differently, that is why the world cannot accept us. It’s in scripture…John 15:18-19 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to this world, if would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of this world. That is why the world hates you.” It’s like the fanny pack, the world hates/ridicules the fanny packer (I should trademark that term) because it stands out, it’s the mark of the foreign tourist, someone who doesn’t belong. We as Christians are the foreign tourists, we are tourists to this world, we don’t belong here. We belong with our King and we are here on this earth just for a little while, we are just visiting until our Lord finishes preparing a place for us to spend eternity with Him.

So, I don’t know about you, but sometimes I am afraid of my fanny pack…no not ashamed, but I am not openly exposing it for the world to see. It’s like it’s stored away in my closet, just waiting to be found. Why is that? Why do I let my faith sit hidden in my closet? Why can’t I wear it on my fanny and be proud of it? I mean, think about fanny packs, they really are practical. They allow for a hands-free, shoulder-free, pain-free way to hold the necessities. You don’t need to take it off to sit, or stand, or walk…you can carry it everywhere, all the time with little hassle. Isn’t our relationship with God just as practical? He provides us with security and love, he carries the weight of our sins so we don’t have to and he is with us always. So why do I let the fear of worldly ridicule and judgment keep me from openly wearing my faithful fanny pack with pride? I want to wear it, I don’t want to hide it. I want to walk in to that foreign land, out of my comfort zone, armed with the Holy Spirit fanny pack, ready to stand firm in my faith against all the contesting remarks of my peers….this strength and courage can only come from the Lord. My hope and prayer is that I can accept and embrace this strength and use it as a tool to live my life solely and completely for my God…I pray that you will to and that together we can shake the nation and the world. Do you have your fanny pack ready?...I’ll go find mine….