Laughing and Crying at Despair

Every once in a while, especially when I am in a foul mood, I like to visit browse through these demotivating posters. Go ahead and look, you know you want to… just remember to come back here and read the rest of the post :). You also have my permission to laugh at what you read. Sometimes it is fun to laugh in the face of despair.

Some of those posters hit a little close to home, though. Those are not quite as funny as others. I admit that I am feeling some despair at the disaster approaching the gulf coast. I am from the Florida Pan Handle, and love that area dearly. It saddens me to know that the area is at risk. So, with the help of Photoshop, I made my own Despair poster using a picture off of the AP wire. It is one that plays on words a little, but I do not think it is funny:

The play on words is in the double meaning of the word corporate. The oil spill may be a result of negligence by one or more several big corporations. BP, or Haliburton, or Transoceanic, or all three may have made mistakes that caused the spill. In that sense, corporate sin could mean big business made mistakes.

The other sense of the word corporate is to include all Americans, or even all people. Our nation is a glutton for oil. We helped drive the demand that created a need to drill in places that could negatively impact our environment. We all use too much energy. I am guilty. We are all guilty. It is corporate sin. Instead of erring in the direction of concern for God’s creation, we worried about fueling our SUV’s and became so caught up in it that we even turned to catch phrases such as “drill, baby, drill!”

In future weeks, I predict that America will look to assign blame for the spill. I hope we look in our collective mirrors. I know that, as a nation, we have begun to do a better job with all things ‘green,’ but I also know that we all have a long way to go. I believe that we can enjoy modern conveniences, but we must also be good stewards of God’s creation at the same time.