Not surprisingly, I’m even less interested than the average American in the world’s most popular tournament.

The other day at work, I witnessed two friends watching a game.  One was clueless, and asked a series of questions about how the tournament worked and the rules of the game.  Now, he has something new that he enjoys, and the bond between them has grown.

My attitude is a far cry from that of Jesus, who was born poor and spent thirty years as an average Jew and manual laborer.  This earned him the credibility for three years of meaningful ministry.

I might not get the World Cup, but I do claim to care about my co-workers and neighbors.  Doing so means learning to express interest in what they love and care about join them in that, and celebrate with them.

A few things did while Jesus lived on earth:

• Taught people
• Healed people
• Fed people
• Prayed a lot
• Hung out with people, of every stripe
• Criticized religious people
• Was killed

The Church:

• Excels in teaching
• Doesn’t do much healing…unless you’re a charismatic, but we don’t want to talk about them…
• Occasionally partners with non-profits that feed people
• Talks about praying a lot
• Is often exclusive, and has even built church growth theories on gathering exclusive groups
• Criticizes people of differing political, sexual or theological persuasion
• Occasionally faces persecution in far off corners of the world

What would you add to these lists?  There are two more questions: Why did Jesus do what he did?  What would he do today?