Nothing travels faster than the speed of light with the possible exception of bad news, which obeys its own special laws. The Hingefreel people of Arkintoofle Minor did try to build spaceships that were powered by bad news but they didn't work particularly well and were so extremely unwelcome whenever they arrived anywhere that there wasn't really any point in being there. - Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
I think Douglas Adams is on to something here. Why is it that bad news travels so much faster than pretty much anything else? When my grandmother died, the first thing I did was I emailed everyone I knew letting them know of this and to ask for prayers. Now this isn't a bad thing, prayers are good. But I bet if I won the lottery I wouldn't be emailing all my friends letting them know and asking for prayers (although I probably would need the prayers more in this instance)
No, we typically don't spread good or nice news to our friends, family, or co-workers. The only exception I can think of to this is when we get a new car. When we get a new car we tell everyone we meet and love to show it off. Guys in particular are guilty of this. We go and show the doors, lights, glove box (which never actually holds gloves) and finally the engine (which to most guys, myself included) doesn't mean anything. "Oh wow Bob, you got the 525 horse power hemi roter engine." I know what all those words mean individually, but not all together. So I guess the question in this instance is, does getting a new car really count as good news? Perhaps it's just bad news with a nice smell.
People are pretty tired of bad news I would think. They get it in the news, television cliff hangers, work, and even music. Perhaps people like the fact that they know someone is worse off than themselves. They feel that their life isn't so bad. Just look at Jim and Jolene who lost their trailer home to a tornado. Wow, sucks to be them right?
Perhaps the same sort of psycology works with good news in that people don't like receiving good news. It makes them feel bad about themselves because someone is better off than themselves. You don't tell your single friend that you're getting married because it will just make them more sad that they don't have someone special of their own to rub into the faces of their single friends.
The thing is, for the most part, people like to receive good news. You go to the mechanic and the bill is $20, you are ecstatic. You find a quarter, your half way to a free soda. Your wife/huband doesn't have cancer? Praise God! So if good news makes people generally happy, why don't we share it?
This of course leads back to the gospel. For those of you reading who aern't "churched", gospel just means "the good news". Christians all over the world have f-ing fantatic news. So why aern't we telling everyone we know (myself included) ?
Maybe we need Bibles with new car smell..
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Babe, you're funny. You make some good points. I read an article today about people in the workplace and this is a quote from a CHRISTIAN, "We aren't here to convert people." Well, yes, buddy, we are. Getting ourselves to heaven is not the end goal. Having a line of people with you when you get there is. Workplace, shopping place, school place, whatever place, we should be spreading the Gospel. Amen? Amen!
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