The Church and Disney

I just got back from Disney World.  My wife, my in-laws, and my two little girls took a "big, big car ride" (as my daughter calls it) down to Orlando to see "Minnie Mouse's house" (another daughter quote).  It was a good vacation--I floated lazily in the pool like a manatee, ate at too many pizza buffets (as if that were possible), and watched plenty of World Cup soccer.

The one day we went to Disney, however, I got thinking about church.  Is it possible that the Christian church could learn something from Walt Disney and the empire he left behind?

Jesus once told a provocative parable and made this point:  "The people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light.  I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings."

In other words, you can learn something from the people of this world!  You can shrewdly analyze the ways of this world and how to use wealth wisely. 

So could we learn something from Disney?  I think so.  A few random thoughts came to mind on this issue:

1.  Visible Joy--The people at Disney have a joy and excitement that you can't miss.  Maybe they really believe in the Disney experience.  Maybe they just don't want to get fired.  But whatever the reason, they get you excited about being there.  But don't Christians have a greater joy and a better reason to be excited?  We are serving the Savior of the world and proclaiming a message that brings more joy than any thrill ride ever could. 

2.  Service--Disney employees did things for our family they didn't have to do.  One woman stopped her clean-up work and made my daughter a little Disney crown.  We were all taken back by the kind gesture.  The little details reflected a service-oriented DNA.  Jesus exemplified that servant attitude when he washed his disciples' feet and commanded us to serve in the same way.  We, too, can catch people's attention with our servant's heart.  Perhaps we can do it better since we aren't getting paid to be Christians!

3.  A Universal Experience--Disney and the gospel might just be the two greatest uniters of culture.  I heard more languages, saw more nationalities, and met more people from far-away places than I ever had before.  Something about the experience draws people from every tribe, people, and nation.  Likewise, the gospel crosses every human barrier and gives forgiveness freely to all people from every place around the world.  God willing, the local church should be the last place where racism or barriers exist!

4.  Train Up a Child--My daughter turns two this week and yet she was enamored with Mickey and Co.  "Mommy, lookie 'dat!" she would squeal while pointing to a Goofie statue.  "Daddie, ooohhh!" she would shout as we passed a billboard with Pluto and Donald Duck.  The girl was in love with those characters.  Why?  Because she was exposed to their faces and stories so frequently.  Is there a lesson there for parents?  Can we generate the same enthusiasm by faithfully reading Bible stories and using picture-Bibles with our little kids?  Without a doubt.  My daughter points and yells, "Cwosss!" whenever she sees a cross.  (She also thinks every man with a beard is Jesus--and every dude in our picture Bible has a beard!)  Let's take advantage of our children's developing brains and youthful enthusiasm.  Point out the exciting things at church--the cross, the Bible, the people, etc.

5.  Worldly Wealth--In Jesus' words above, he says we should use wordly wealth to make friends.  In turn, we might be able to change their eternities through the message of the cross.  Disney knows how to use wordly wealth.  I can't imagine the cost of all those employees, greeters, janitors, characters, advertisements, etc.  But they've taken in a great return!  Their theme parks and resorts made over 11.5 billion dollars in 2008!  And they have made a lot of "friends" with their investments.  What can the church learn?  Just what Jesus said.  Use your money to make friends.  Be generous.  Help others.  Buy lunch.  Think outside of yourself and leverage the power of money for the good of Christian love and the proclamation of the gospel.

There's a lot to enjoy at Disney.  And perhaps something we can learn as Christians.

God bless,

Pastor Mike