Haircuts and Jesus...

I got my haircut this week. Yeah, it's a pretty big deal for me. When I walk into the salon (yes, I go to a "salon." I used to strictly go to the barber shop, but I like the treatment at the salon...Shampoo and scalp massages, warm towels, good product for styling, and the like...Don't get me wrong, I love the warm shaving cream used for the trim jobs by the barber...But, I want rock star hair, and the local barbers just can't make that happen...Wow...This has been a long tangent)...Anyway, when I walk into the salon, I ask the stylist to give me a lazy man's rock star haircut. I say lazy because I'm not a morning person and I just won't take the time to put products in my hair and make it look all funky. Basically, that means she'll cut my hair different lengths and add some texture to it. The lady that cuts my hair always gives me a mini-Mohawk when I leave...It's fun, but usually doesn't last long.

Anyway, this week I got my haircut and the conversation went to Jesus pretty quickly. Being that I work at a church, when anyone asks how my work is going...Church, God, and Jesus quickly come to the conversation. Well, we were talking about meetings and I spoke of how I'm pretty fond of having my meetings at Scotty's Brewhouse or the Heorot. I then spoke of how many church people aren't too fond of me having meetings at Scotty's of the Heorot. She asked, "Why? Are Christians not allowed to drink?" At that point, I said, "Well, it depends on who you talk to." I explained how different denominations teach different things. I also explained how many denominations will have doctrine that says drinking is wrong, but the majority of people sitting in the pews on Sunday morning have no clue (take the Methodist's for example. One of my favorite jokes is..."What's the difference between an Episcopal and a Methodist? Episcopal will say hello when they see each other in the liquor store."). The young man cutting hair in the booth next to us said, "Well, Jesus drank." I pointed out Jesus' first miracle of turning water into wine...Good wine...Great wine...The best wine ever! I talked about how many of us get tripped up on issues like this, which are man made issues. I then went on to talk about all of the moral values junk out there...Many that aren't really based on Scriptural teaching, but the preferences of man.

Anyway, it was a great conversation. My hairstylist commented that most of her interactions with Christians have been with judgmental fundamentalists, but that I seemed like a pretty real person. I took that as a compliment. Every time I've gotten my haircut, she's told me that she and her husband want to start going to church, but just can't seem to commit to getting up on Sunday mornings. She never went to church growing up...But has this feeling that they should at least go to church on holidays (Christmas and Easter). Well, it's a start!

My next haircut is in 4 weeks. And, I think I need to invite her and her husband to join us at church on Palm Sunday and/or Easter Sunday.

Well, the whole conversation reminded me of Mark 7:1-23. It's the whole issue of clean and unclean. Jesus says it's not what goes into a person that makes them unclean...It's what comes out. What we eat or drink goes into our stomachs, not our hearts. Jesus said, it's out of the heart that all the bad comes from. It's about the heart...My evil thoughts are not spurred on by a Guinness or too many tacos...They are brought on by the errors of my heart. In fact, the Guinness usually makes it easier to deal with the issues that often make me unclean.

Well, that's enough for today, for now, anyway.