McDonald's and Theology

Today, my life was shattered by the incredible news that San Francisco leaders had voted to ban toys from being sold in McDonald's Happy Meals (here's the link). I can't imagine how many five-year-olds are at their favorite fastfood joint watching the "Man" steal away everyone's favorite display of Hotwheels and Barbies. This is seriously the worst thing that has happened since they ran out of the white PowerRanger action figure when I was eight (I'm still recovering from this life episode). Way to go, San Francisco! Moments after making everyone soooo happy with our World Series Championship, you make kids cry. Nothing is more inhumane than making a child cry! Do you have a heart?

Ok, now that I am done ranting, let's get to the serious lesson learned here. If I was actually eight years old, I would definitely be mortified by this infringement on my right to eat extremely unhealthy food for a toy which costs the company twenty cents to manufactor; the truth is, I really did love McDonald's just for the toys. And, as much as I don't want to admit it, this new legislation can actually teach us all a lesson.

The reasoning behind the ban on toys in Happy Meals is stated as being because the meals are "unhealthy". Basically, these toys are luring children into eating unhealthy meals with a reward. While this legislation makes sense when viewed from that angle, what about other things in our lives? Isn't this the way our heart works? Don't we like to see past the long-term consequences in view of something with immediate reward?

Last summer, I read a book by Timothy Keller, Counterfeit Gods, which focuses on the issue of idolatry in our lives. This book kicked my butt. While many of us may view idolatry as an ancient practice of bowing to statues, they still linger in our present society. Our idols (e.g. money and success) tend to act just like the Mc Donald's toy luring us into consuming something which will lead to our death. The sad thing is that we usually care more about our physical death by protecting our children from harmful food, but we totally ignore our spiritual health by chasing after idols. All the while, children watch our every move and grow up chasing the same things. Of course, Happy Meals are delicious, but those chicken mcnuggets will kill you if you eat them everyday. Idols usually look good, feel good, and taste good, but they are more deadly than we think. Our society is full of these types of things. Money, relationships, television, and sporting events all can make us lose our minds at times. Are we meant to live this way?

Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. 1 Corinthians 10:14

When will we, as Christians, ban the toys from our lives?