Overcoming Indifference: The Burger Join Story

I was talking to a friend about their old college campus and the best burger place there. It was several decades ago, but the burger joint, called “The Burger Joint” was the place to be!  It didn’t matter if it was 8 am breakfast burger, lunch burger or midnight snack burger, anyone and everyone loved getting burgers there!  And business was booming.  It helped that it was one of only two or three little restaurants in the area.

But as time wore on, the campus grew and more restaurants started moving in. Pizza, Chinese, Italian, Sandwiches, and finally the dreaded fast food chains.  The Burger Joint management said, “we like our burgers and our customers like our burgers, so we’ll just keep doing what we’ve been doing.  We’ll always be here!”  But time told another story: as the older students left and the new students came, the new ones didn’t automatically go to The Burger Joint.  They didn’t hate the burgers, but that place wasn’t compelling either.  The Burger Joint saw some customers come in to try it out, but often they didn’t return.  There were some nostalgic alumni would eat there a few times a year, but not enough to keep place afloat.  The tables were worn and the walls dirty and the iconic jukebox in the corner sat silent.

Finally, the owners, tired and frustrated, had to make the hardest decision of their lives. “Do we adapt what we do in order to keep up our mission to feed the people of this community? Or, do we keep doing the same thing and watch it dwindle to nothing?”

What would you tell them to do?

You know, Session has been asking this very same question about our ministry at Southminster.  Like The Burger Joint, the church in America is not under direct attack, it’s just indifference.  There are so many spiritual, fellowship, and family-focused activities, many Americans today simply overlook the church.  They don’t hate the church; they just don’t see the value in it anymore.  What is God telling us to do?

This July we will be talking about the story of Jesus sending out his Disciples into the world and the responsibility and joy that comes with adapting to a new reality.  Southminster is redefining our mission around our strengths and goals.  We will not fade away; we are finding ways to stay vital and vibrant in our community.

You may have noticed Bed Bath and Beyond, Party City, and David’s Bridal all declared bankruptcy or closed stores right here in Sunset Hills shopping center and Slumberland is taking their place.  As Southminster redefines our mission around our core beliefs (Bible-based, Jesus-centered, neighbor-focused), we continue to offer a ministry of service and love to our city.  We are finding new ways to go out and be the hands and feet of Jesus just as those early disciples did, and overcome the indifference of the world. 

           Pastor Karl