From 2007-2014 the FOX Network ran a reality television series entitled KITCHEN NIGHTMARES. It starred Chef Gordon Ramsay, who is invited by the owners of a failing restaurant to come and spend a week with them, in an attempt to revive the business.
Typically, the owner thinks the problem is something like, “their sign isn’t bright enough” or “the people in the community just don’t know good food when they see it”, or “the servers aren’t quite up to snuff”. Typically, the owner believes it’s always someone else who is at fault. But as Chef Ramsay comes in and sees what’s really going on, its usually two issues. Number one, it’s the owner. And number two, it’s the food!
Often there are gross moments as Chef Ramsay looks in the freezer and in the refrigerator and discovers maggots or some other off-putting things such as that. Other times they’re using a microwave to warm up frozen food, and it’s just an absolute disaster. But the shocking point in almost every single episode, there’s this moment where the owner and operator is staring reality in the face and they are unwilling to accept it. They’re confronted with everything that they’re doing wrong and they either cannot or will not see it. And the audience is left thinking, “I’m sure if I were running that restaurant, I would be different!”
But the truth of the matter is, that kind of change is hard for all of us, because on some level, it means that we must admit, (drum roll please) that we’re the biggest part of the problem. And that’s really, really, hard. It’s easier to live in denial than it is to admit that we were wrong about something. And that’s why what happens in the city of Nineveh, in JONAH CHAPTER THREE, is so absolutely shocking. Not only is it shocking, it’s miraculous!
Why don’t you make plans now to join us this Sunday at our service at 9:30 or 11AM, or in our livestream service at 11AM on riverbluff.live, as we continue to follow Jonah, and see how the work of OUR RELENTLESS 2ND CHANCE GOD can radically transform a culture, one life at a time!
Additionally, some incredible moments will be taking place on our campus this Sunday:
- CARS MINISTRY will give a car to a single mom!
- We will see two people FOLLOW JESUS IN BAPTISM!
- We’ll have a brief YELLOW RIBBON CEREMONY honoring a young person’s decision to serve in the U.S. Armed Forces.
It’s gonna be a great day to “be in the River”!
Pastor Joe Still
