Kitchen Nightmare's and the Church

I have been an avid fan of “Kitchen Nightmares” with Gordon Ramsey for a couple of years. While I am not a fan of his abusive language I do like to see the transformation that he makes in the restaurants he visits. In each case the chef of the restaurant has become overwhelmed and lost their passion for cooking. They have lost their edge and creativity and have slid into a survival mode. They have allowed the grease and dirt to accumulate and they have lowered their standards especially in the area of the food that they serve. They start taking shortcuts in preparing the meal, shortcuts in the quality of the food used, etc. In most all cases the chef is unaware that the food that they are serving is substandard. When they are told of their substandard quality they become defensive. Financially the restaurant is failing because of a lack of patrons because of the reputation that the restaurant has in the community. The patrons which do come have low expectations and come because it is convenient or because they can see people they know. They are in need of Gordon’s help to relaunch their restaurant and bring back their passion. It is only after Gordon has caused them to face reality that they are ready to make a change.

One day as I was driving I was thinking about the Kitchen Nightmare program and started to think of how it describes many of the churches in America and their pastors. There are many churches that have a pastor that was once very passionate and creative. However, over time the pastor has become overwhelmed with the day to day responsibilities and has lost their passion. They have allowed things to build up and they have lowered their standards in the spiritual food that they serve. They have started to look for shortcuts in preparation and delivery. They have entered a survival mode and many are unaware that the food that they serve is substandard leaving their congregants hungry. If they were told that their food was substandard they would be appalled and feel disrespected. They have lost their edge and creativity. Many of the people that they serve on a weekly basis come with little expectation and come more out of a sense of convenience or come to visit people that they know.

During the period of the Tanach, Israel had the prophets who would challenge the king and the people and bring back their passion for HaShem. During the First Century Yeshua challenged the religious leaders and the people to bring them to a closer relationship with HaShem. In some cases he challenged the quality of the teaching that was put forth to the people. Today the religious world is in a need for a Gordon Ramsey to come and challenge them, to reveal to them the areas in which they have let go and their food standards.

As teachers we need to examine what we put out and examine to see if we are cutting corners and sacrificing the quality and level of the teaching. We may need to be honest with ourselves admitting that we have lost our passion and be willing to change.