The Washing Feet “He Gets Us” Commercial – I Wasn’t Going To Write About It

During the Super Bowl there was a “He Gets Us” commercial. I’ve written about one of them before (here) and I wasn’t going to write about this one because I thought it would be best to just let you have your own thoughts and opinions on it without mine getting in the way. The simple message from all the commercials is that Jesus is so much more than what you probably think. Or as Kevin Max (of DCTalk) once sang, “You blow away every myth… they taught me in Sunday School.”

I love the truth that Jesus cares. He wants to carry our burdens. But even more than that, he knows our hearts. I struggle with something that someone else is not tempted by. Another person is weak in an area where I’m strong. Jesus knows we are weak sometimes. Sometimes the idea of church comes across judge-y and maybe that’s a product of Christians in the 80s and 90s now coming to fruition in the 2000s-2020s. I was taught (or at least I remember learning this somehow) that even drinking is a sin. I mean gosh, in the movie Footloose dancing is a sin. There’s been so much fluff added to Christianity and these ads are aiming to strip that all way. Get rid of the rules and get back to Jesus.

That’s the idea behind the commercials but the one in the Super Bowl, on the surface I was fine with it. Mostly because my attention was divided so I didn’t even really catch it. Watching it now, though… it kind of ticks me off A LOT. Here it is as a refresher…

Officer Tatum pointed out that both people in every image had bare feet, so everyone was washing everyone’s feet. That makes it less agitating but without being able to pause it and pick out the nuances, the ad is such a cultural butt-kiss. Of course the priest is washing the gay guy’s feet! Obviously the cop is washing the black man’s feet! These are ideas that will be embraced by everyone who wants tolerance to be the top virtue. But there’s another subtle mistake in the ad, too. Getting back to Jesus… He is all-powerful, Lord, seated at the right hand of God. There’s no name above His. But while He was on earth, he took on the form of a servant. So the image of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet is remarkable because here’s this Heavenly being, superior in every way, and He’s serving. Lifting others up in encouragement. If the ad mirrors this, then it’s affirming that the washer (the cop, the priest, the white man, etc) is superior to the washee.

The intentions were good, I believe. I’m probably just reading into it too much. But this question posed by a viewer on YouTube is really interesting, don’t you think?

Along those lines, here’s a much better video conveying the power of Jesus, who, in spite of His own glory and superiority, considered Himself a servant who came to change us, not affirm us.

-Out of the Wilderness

-Out of the Wilderness

My First Duathlon – The Results!

Kieran, dim the lights. The results are in and America has voted. Is that your final answer? When it comes to little Johnny, I am NOT the father! Ok, that’s a mashup of random shows that don’t jive with what today’s post is about whatsoever. Except that we ARE talking about results and the results of my very first duathlon are in.

As you’ll recall from this post, my goal was to be one of the top 15 guys (I forgot to mention that I also wanted to finish under 1:10:00). The math for that was 15 minutes for the first 2 miles, 38 for biking, and another 15 for the last 2 miles. Adding 2 for transition time and the total is 1:10:00. Here are the official results…

There were 12 guys that finished ahead of me which means I reached my goal! Also, finishing just under 1:04:00 makes me so happy. I can’t deny that the training helped out a ton and now it just makes me want to train more. During the first 2-mile run, I knew I was going fast but had no idea it was a 6:21 pace. The biking was about as hard as I thought it would be. I seemed to hit a wall around mile 7 but a couple of miles later felt a second wind come over me. I knew the final 2-mile run I had a slower pace but I was happy to see it was still under 7:00 per mile.

Overall, I’m very happy with my performance in the duathlon. Now, time to start training for the next one! Coming up in March is another duathlon featuring a 5K, a 12-mike bike, and finishing with a 1.6-mile run.

-Out of the Wilderness

The Secret Sisters “All the Ways” – The Music Video, the Actor, and More!

I’ve been a fan of The Secret Sisters for a long time, probably ever since I first heard their song “He’s Fine” from 2017. Then there was “You Don’t Own Me Anymore” and my appreciation for their music was cemented. Such a fan I was that when they came to Nashville one Christmas season, my top goal– well, the top goal was to enjoy their music– my secret top goal was to get a high-five from them.

The Video. I’m so awkward, aren’t I? But now I want to give them another high five for their latest music video. It’s a song featuring Ray LaMontagne called “All the Ways.” Their harmonies and the quality of their voices astounds and confounds me. A duet (or is it a trio?) with Ray, another favorite of mine, was a great idea, too.

The Actor. The heartbroken Uber driver is actor Linds Edwards. You may recognize him from The Hunger Games, or various other movies and TV shows. You can find more on his IMDb page or follow him on Instagram: @LindsEdwards.

The Resonation. I almost wrote “the heartbroken Uber drive is me,” because that’s how much I resonate with the character. Love is all around me. Couples holding hands, canoodling, being all lovey-dovey. Sometimes it’s sweet. Sometimes it makes me want to barf. Also, I totally recognized the ding on his phone at the beginning of the video. What, I told you I’ve been an Uber driver before! Wait, did I tell you that? Here’s a clip of me delivering a hot taco for a big tip the other day…

The Uber driver guy reaches out to a lost love, maybe for the last time. To his delight, she responds positively and it doesn’t look like he’s going to let the chance of loving her again slip by. He wants to love her in all the ways. It kind of reminds me of that classic love song from Weird Al…

Oh wait, that’s me. I’m white and nerdy. One day I’ll get the girl, you just wait! All kidding aside, this is a great song from The Secret Sisters and a perfect video to go along with it. I’m glad these talented sisters aren’t a secret! Not being able to listen to their unique, harmonized vocals would be a real shame.

High-fiving from Florida…

-Out of the Wilderness

Who’s still doing timeshares?

I heard an ad on the radio the other day about a law firm that helps people get out of timeshares. I wondered to myself… who the heck is still doing timeshares? I’ve never met one person who’s part of one, I’ve never seen an ad asking me to get into one, and the only commercials I’ve ever seen in the last million years about timeshares are the ones offering to help people get out of them.

If getting out of them is such a common need, how horrible they must be! If I had to make a guess before I Google it, I’d say that timeshares is something that will die off with older generations. No one my age (45) is doing timeshares that I know of. I would be extremely shocked if Gen Z or the people ages 20 to 30 have even an inkling of interest in timeshares. All I’ve ever heard is that it’s a nightmare to be part of one. And expensive.

*Googling it now*

OK wow. I’m shocked by what this USAToday.com article says.

Maybe the bad reputation timeshares have with Boomers and Gen X isn’t transcending to Gen Z and Millennials. That’s crazy. But in that article, it says that timeshares have expanded to include more than just one location every year. So if it can change and adapt as time goes by, I guess people will continue to see the benefits. Well, I’m surprised by what I discovered, I figured timeshares would become a relic of generations gone by but it looks like they’re taking on a new life with the young’ns.

-Out of the Wilderness

The KIA Ice Skating Ad – The Music, Post Malone, and More!

At this point in my life, KIA pretty much has me wrapped around their South Korean finger. Their commercials, just like their vehicles, have become such a force (going back to their robo-dog commercial from last year) I remember when the brand was sort of the butt of a lot of jokes in regards to quality and people taking them seriously.

*”We wanna see ya… in an KIA” – Nashville natives who know this, can I get an amen?

But now, even with the crooked logo, their cars and SUVs are sleek, sporty, classy, and the commercials will tug every one of your heart strings. Take a look at their commercial that aired during the Super Bowl, then scroll down for more info!

The Music. The song in the commercial is “Wish I Was Here” by Cat Power & Coldplay. Here’s the full track…

It’s a beautiful KIA car, a beautiful commercial, and a beautiful song. So let’s watch one more thing that’s beautiful from the Super Bowl. And no, I’m not talking about the results. I really wish the Niners would’ve sealed the deal on that overtime drive that ended with a field goal. You can’t give the ball back to Mahomes and MaAuto! You just can’t. Here’s a song performed early in the game broadcast by a guy I like more and more as time goes by. A lot of people consider him a beautiful human being so here’s Post Malone singing, “America, The Beautiful.”

The Super Bowl has been known for the commercials for a long time. I didn’t love that the very first one this time was an ad for a movie, but overall the commercials were really good. Better than they’ve been in the last ten years or so! What did you think? Meet me at the Tallahassee KIA dealership and let’s discuss.

-Out of the Wilderness