My Sweet Jesus

I stumbled upon this web site the other day.

It scared me a little.

To view the website go to http://www.mysweetjesus.com

Here is a brief list of everything that scares me about this Jesus:

1. He speaks in the third person – His chest says “Jesus loves you” not “I love you”

2. Jesus cost’s only $22 – forget any notion of a priceless Jesus or even free Jesus. This Jesus costs $22

3. This Jesus is only available to those in the US or Canada – maybe that’s okay, because no one else wants it, but doesn’t the whole world need Jesus?

4. The kid seems to be a bit afraid of it and can’t get away from it quick enough. Either that, or he’s just mad at Santa because he asked for a G.I. Joe

5. Jesus comes gift wrapped – I wonder how Jesus feels every time we put a nice little bow on Him and tell other’s he’s safe and pretty

6. My Sweet Jesus is made out of the same stuff as a stuffed animal

7. If you find the picture of Jesus by the window it appears as though he’s floating on a cloud. That’s not supposed to happen until the end of the world.

If you’ve read their list of 7X70 reasons why you should own a My Sweet Jesus doll let me add a few more

1. My Sweet Jesus Doubles as a traffic cone

2. The heart that reads, “Jesus Loves You” is sewn on and can be replaced with a speech bubble, to help keep your kids in line, that reads, “I’m watching you”

3. Coming soon from Cote Creations “The Sheep and The Goats Play Set.” When used in conjunction with the My Sweet Jesus doll your child can play “Judgment Day” and share with their friends what will happen to them.

There’s so much that could be said for their list of reasons for having a My Sweet Jesus doll. Each reason is pretty much an “insert joke here _____” moment, but I’ll refrain. Except there is one that I can’t let go of. Reason #9 “You (or your child) probably don’t have a Jesus doll.” What? There are other Jesus dolls out there? Why do I need one? Why is my life not complete without a Jesus doll? Isn’t it far better to have the real thing in my life?

I guess my concern, and part of the reason this doll sets me off so much, is that we often get confused and grab onto something fake instead of holding fast to what is real. As much as they claim this doll helps you have a relationship with Jesus, or helps you get out of bed and go to church on Sunday, or provides comfort in troubled times, it is not a substitute for a real relationship with Jesus. He’s so much more than a fifteen-inch tall doll we carry around with us. My concern is that we forget that. Or even worse others around us forget that too. They see the doll and think that’s all there is to our God.