Elvis, Action, and Outflow

Back in July of '07, I was intrigued by a sign at the gas station...something along the lines of "live like a king." The sign was advertising the latest incarnation of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups; a Limited Edition Elvis Banana Creme and Peanut Butter. I didn't have any cash on me, and I had already paid at the pump, but I knew my week wouldn't be complete without trying this combination of some of my favorite things. I'm always a sucker for the various incarnations of Reese's (dark chocolate, honey peanut butter, inside-out) and when I was growing up, my mom would mix Peanut Butter, Bananas, and Duke's Mayo together and serve it on wheat bread- it's still one of my favorites.

Long story short, I visited 3 grocery stores that week before finally just heading back to the gas station where I had seen the sign. Even then, the candy hadn't been stocked on the shelves. The cashier had stashed them behind the register. I half expected to be asked a secret code word or something in order to get them! I bought two packs and immediately headed home to try them out. They were delicious as expected, and I was able to move on with my life.

Fast forward to present day January '08...the heady days of summer Reese's consumption have slowly given way to the slow winter. The other night I was at Bi-Lo here in Lake Wylie and saw a stray package of these "Limited Editions" mixed in with the standard Reese's cups. I figured I might as well enjoy them again one more/last time. Incidentally, January 8th was the King's birthday, so maybe it was serendipity that allowed me to stumble on the treat once again. The first batch had been released to coincide with the 30th anniversary of his death.

But as I was eating them, I was overcome with a whirlwind of emotion (okay, that may be a bit of an overstatement). Elvis was a musician first and foremost...the King of Rock 'N Roll who changed the face of radio for years to come. The Beatles, Dylan, U2, and more cite him as an early influence.

But today, his face is on a box of candy, inspired by his most peculiar of eating habits: the fried peanut butter and banana sandwich. I would argue that most know him best from Halloween costumes, Food TV trivia, parodies, and impersonators. In other words, Elvis is no longer known as an artist, but as a personality-- he's known for being Elvis.

The same can be said for many Christians. We are to reflect Christ in our daily lives. Our every action is supposed to point to the saving grace of our Heavenly father. Yet, we rarely are known for being like Christ. Instead, we're known for calling ourselves Christians. There is a big difference.

Jesus said in Luke 9:23:

"If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself..."

In James 1:22-24, God tells us:

"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like."

This Christian life is a life that is Christ-filled, not compartmentalized. This past Sunday, as part of our series on Outflow, David Zimmerman talked about how tough it can be to share Christ's love with our family and friends because we've blown it so many times. We may have shown Christ's love in one area and been totally selfish in another. No one is perfect, and we're going to mess up, but the overall outflow of our lives is what we'll be known/remembered for.

There was a time when Elvis was known for music, singing, artistry, etc. As he grew older and more indulgent, he became known for his eating habits, drug addiction, marital infidelity, and eccentricity. Now his name is not at the top of the charts, it's on a box of candy.

Where will our names end up?