City Life Starter

Written by Paul Lane

The Word

“And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.”

Psalm 134:24 (NKJV)

^“He who rebukes a man will find more favor afterward than he who flatters with the tongue.

Proverbs 28:23 (NKJV)

Reflection

In the 1970, there was a spaghetti commercial that claimed to be authentically Italian. It showed an Italian family having a nice meal while a Madison Avenue pitch man extolled the virtues of the sauce. Then at the end the camera swept around the table showing family members pinching cheeks and saying, “That’s Italian!” It’s a fun and cheeky commercial. No one was fooled into thinking it was anything more than the latest in salesmanship for just another food product. But it did hit a nerve, as any good commercial would. People have a desire for things that are authentic.  The problem is, is that it doesn’t have to actually be authentic for it to fit the bill.

On April Fools’ Day in 1957, the BBC pulled off an amazing hoax. They filmed a fake documentary of people on the Swiss-Italian boarder working their annual spaghetti harvest. Done in perfect BBC style, the documentary described the harvest while showing joyful workers carefully place handpicked strands of the most perfect spaghetti.  The fake documentary was a great success.  You see, at the time, pasta was not widely eaten in the UK, so many people didn’t know that pasta was actually made from wheat and didn’t grow on trees.

So, what about alfredo sauce? Is that actually Italian? I’m glad you asked. As I understand it, it is not a recipe passed down through centuries, but it was created in Italy. You see, during World War II, the Italian people reached out to the American soldiers who were far from home. They wanted to make something for the soldiers that would give them a sense of home. Authentic human charity during an overwhelmingly difficult time. If you know anything about American comfort food, then you know that adding cream and butter are a no brainer to give an American a sense of home. So, the Italians started to make this rich cream sauce for the spaghetti. “Now that’s Italian!”

Application

Now you know something about the history of spaghetti and spaghetti sauce, so what?  Note the word “actually.”  For authenticity to be active in your life, it must be rooted in the truth.  So, if there is “any wicked (false) way” in you, it would be good to know. Search your heart and start there. See if there is anything false in our life that you need to let go or makeup/apologize for. But also know that truth must be wrapped in wisdom. This is about dealing with your own issues, not about dumping them on someone else who has probably moved on from the issue.

If you are willing, God will show you what you are to work on. He will show you the false and the ugly in your life, but don’t be overwhelmed. The false and the ugly fall away much easier than you might think. In this I think you will find that God’s wonderful charity extends beyond what you can imagine.

Prayer

Dear Lord, thank you for your ways.  I pray that they become my ways.  Show me my false ways and give me the grace to shun them, and the wisdom to embrace your truth.  In all things may your name be praised. Amen.