Last week I was on vacation.  The wife and I had decided to get away for some rest and relaxation in Orlando FL, visiting a whole bunch of theme parks.

It’s something we enjoy doing together.

But I had my eyes rather rudely opened as I looked around at what was going on.  Just about everything I saw at had someone’s brand on it.

• When we went shopping, it was all about name brands wanting me to buy into their message
• When we went to the parks they ALL had sections devoted to experiencing and reliving specific entertainment brands
• The people who attended (and yes, even yours truly fell into this category) wore apparel that broadcast our affiliation and preference for specific media properties.

What am I talking about?  How about I share a few of the Brands that were in my face all weekend.  What images come to your mind?

Disney, Warner Bro’s, Star Wars, Harry Potter, Avengers, Toy Story, Jurassic World, The Little Mermaid, Pirates of the Caribbean…

And the shopping brands were just as prevalent.  Tommy Bahamas, Coach, Coca-Cola, Fabletics, Lacoste, Levi’s, Oakley…  I could go on and on…

It just struck me.  All these brands want you.  They want you to embrace the promise that they offer.  They want you to advertise your allegiance.  They want you to consume them and make them bigger and bolder in the world.

But as a Christians, we are called to “come out and be separate” and to be “transformed”.  We are not to live by the values of the world around us. 

We are to identify with different brands.

Our allegiance is to Jesus.  Not a brand of clothing. Our value and our purpose is defined by the gospel.  Not the happy slogan of a media property.  We strive to be like God in His holiness.  Not our favorite storybook or movie hero.

Over and over I felt bombarded by the messages of how these brands would make me happy, how they would make me cool, how they would make me fit in and be ok.

But I had to remind myself.  I am a citizen of the heavenly kingdom, and my purpose and value are bound up in Christ in God.

It’s tough to resist the incessant messaging of the world for substitute brands.  If we don’t take action, we can be worn down and succumb to what these ungodly companies (powered by the ruler of this world and the prince of darkness) want us to become.

Over and over, a book kept popping into my mind.  The Pursuit of Holiness, by Jerry Bridges.  It’s a book that I’ve had a long time and go back to over and over.  It’s one of those books about a culturally inappropriate brand:  Holiness.

The apostle Peter, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, quotes Leviticus when he writes “Be ye holy as I am holy”.  Yes, he’s saying all that from God’s point of view. 

We are to pursue holiness because that is what God is like.

If you’re feeling a little brand-weary from the message of the world, this book would be a great “pick-me-up” and encouragement for how you could life a life that was oriented toward holiness.

I’ve got links for it here so you can get a copy and start to realign your brand loyalty to focus on enteral principles rather than earthly substitutes.

I think it’s time that I gave the book a re-read myself.  I feel weary of all the messages trying to get in my head.  And if I don’t stay focused, I know I’ll drift off to the lesser brands too.

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