"Because we're fans"

“…because we’re fans,” says George M. Cohon, founder and senior chairman of McDonalds Canada since 1978, at the end of their commercial for the 2014 Winter Olympics. McDonalds first began sponsoring the Olympic Games in 1976 in Montreal, and on January 13, 2012 announced that they will continue their Olympic Games partnership until 2020

And over the past 38 years they have a commitment to help to fund the Olympic Games, also the Olympic movement around the world and ultimately the athletes themselves by both supporting the athletes and recognized the part their families played in making their dreams come true.

So to be a ‘fan’, means to McDonalds that they support the programme with money, with a visible presence at the site with their restaurants, with marketing programmes beforehand centering on the country’s athletes. It takes a commitment of time and resources. It is a good thing!

Do we, as committed Christians, support the church over the long haul with generous donations of money? Are we a visible presence on Sundays and other special days in the churches calendar? Do we support the leaders in the church with the resources they need to achieve excellence for the community, as well as acknowledging the role their families play in those achievements? Are we willing to commit ourselves to continue to provide those resources 5 years into the future or longer? I should be hearing a resounding “YES” to all of the above because these things, according to Gregory Cohon and McDonalds, are what ‘fans’ do.

The early disciples were called in the Great Commission to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations...” [Matthew 28:19] (The word ‘disciple’ from the Oxford online dictionary is defined as ‘a follower or pupil of a teacher, leader, or philosopher’). So as members of the Christian church we are committed through our baptism to following the teachings of Jesus and are therefore his disciples. As disciples of Jesus we are to feed the hungry, care for the sick, for the women and children; for the vulnerable in society. We are called to love our neighbor as ourselves, to live a life of non-violence. We are the ‘salt of the earth’ who are not ‘to hide our light under a bushel’. We are not called to garner wealth or goods for ourselves, but to share whatever we have freely with everyone. Or as the prophet Micah said, long before the time of Jesus, “To do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God" [Micah 6:8]

Are you a ‘fan’ or a ‘disciple’ of Jesus?

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