16: Wonderful Spam

from Jem

Wonderful Spam

Spam Jam

Megamall Mandaluyong, PH

March 4, 2012

Project: Food & Thoughts No. 16

Spam Jam!

Jem and I just finished the Church service. It was the start of the new series entitled Intrusion. The goal of this 4-week series is for us to have a greater trust in God, knowing that He is present even in impossible situations, and He is faithful to accomplish His will in each of our lives. (Go to this link for more information) It was a blessed message. Feel free to join any Victory Church to enjoy the rest of the series.

After Church, we went to Megamall for dinner. Jem loooooves Spam. It’s his favorite. We saw Spam Jam in Megamall days ago and we promised ourselves we'll be back. So today, we went all the way from Market Market to Megamall for this. 

We ordered the following:

Spam Burger with Lemonade @ P95-
Spam Rice with Lemonade @ P95-
Photo by Jem.

While we were enjoying our simple and fun dinner, Jem curiously asked why the word “spam” is also used to refer to electronic spamming. I became curious too. He suggested that I talk about it in this blog entry.

So, here I am writing the entry and checking the ever-reliable Wikipedia. It says:

According to the Internet Society and other sources, the term spam is derived from the 1970  Spam sketch of the BBC television comedy series Monty Python’s Flying Circus. The sketch is set in a café where nearly every item on the menu includes Spam canned luncheon meat. As the waiter recites the Spam-filled menu, a chorus of Viking patrons drowns out all conversations with a song repeating “Spam, Spam, Spam, Spam…lovely Spam! Wonderful Spam!”, hence “Spamming” the dialogue.  The excessive amount of Spam mentioned in the sketch is a reference to the preponderance of imported canned meat products in the United Kingdom, particularly a brand of tinned ham (Shoulder Pork hAM = SPAM) from the USA, in the years after the World War II, as the country struggled to rebuild its agricultural base.

In the 1980s the term was adopted to describe certain abusive users who frequented BBSs and MUDs, who would repeat “Spam” a huge number of times to scroll other users text off the screen…Sending an irritating, large, meaningless block of text…called spamming. (For more information, go this link.) 

Curiosity satisfied. Now I can sleep well. Haha!

 Although I don't want to be spammed ever, there are areas in my life where I think I need to receive constant and repeated (a million times) reminders on. The following are just a few of them:

• I need about one hundred reminders to drink water instead of colored drinks.
• I need ten reminders to pay my bills on time.
• I need two hundred reminders to vacuum-clean my house every week.
• I need five thousand reminders to learn to eat vegetables.
• I need five hundred reminders to save money.
• I need a thousand reminders to pray everyday and in every event in my life.
• I need another thousand reminders to read my Bible everyday.
• I need a million reminders to ask God of His will in every single area of my life and not rely on my own wisdom nor ability.

I could go on and on and on. I bet you could too.

 Just because we survive the day without praying doesn't mean we don't need God. Just because we are still alive doesn't mean we don't have to pray for our lives. Just because we think we have everything we need doesn't mean we don't lack anything. 

God causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends His rain on the righteous and the unrighteous (Matthew 5:45). Even the very hairs of our head are numbered (Matthew 10:30). He knows the secrets of our hearts (Psalm 44:21b). His ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts than our thoughts (Isaiah 55:9). He knows what we need even before we ask Him (Matthew 6:8)

...SO WHO ARE WE TO BOAST?

I am human. The more I get to know God's goodness the more I see my rottenness. I am going to need a lot of reminders and I don't mind  a million if that's what's going to keep me in Him. I have experienced the joy of salvation and it is something I will not exchange for anything in this world.

Father,

I am nothing apart from You. It is my fervent prayer that You do not ever allow me to be away from You again. I have experienced life without You and it is nothing but emptiness sugarcoated with a lot of temporary and superficial things. Remind me (in whichever form) a million times  if You have to every day for me to do the things that pleases You; not because I have to but because I get to. Do not ever leave me nor forsake me. Remind me of your new grace every morning. Thank you for Your everlasting love.

Amen