Today’s Illustration: M & M’s — Old Out, New In

Who: The Mars Corporation

When: Changing the M&M characters to fit the 2022 culture, more inclusive and progressive

What: “M&M’s iconic characters — six different colored “lentils,” each with their own personality — have gotten a modern makeover for a “more dynamic, progressive world,”

The Basic Details:

“M&Ms were first sold in 1941” [1]
“The [M&M] characters arrived on the scene in 1954.” [1]
“Old M&Ms commercials starred Red and Yellow, representing regular and peanut M&Ms.”[1]
There were four male and two female characters. That is changing [1]
“But the most noticeable change is to the six M&M characters: new shoes. Green has swapped her go-go boots for sneakers. Brown is sporting lower, more sensible heels. Red and Yellow’s shoes now have laces. Orange’s shoes laces are no longer untied. And Blue’s shoes, while little changed, resemble what Anton Vincent, president of Mars Wrigley North America, described as “a bad version of Uggs.” [1]
“The most notable changes include the green M&M’s redesign” [2]
“[The Green M&M], will exchange the white heeled go-go boots she was given in 1997 for “cool, laid-back sneakers to reflect her effortless confidence.” [2]
“The green M&M and the brown M&M will have a more friendly relationship.” [ Okay, I didn’t know they were not friendly?] [2]
“The brown M&M’s heels will be lowered to a professional heel height.”[2]
“The orange M&M, who has an anxious personality, will “embrace his true self, worries and all.” But the orange M&M’s shoe laces will now be tied to represent his cautious nature. According to Mars, the orange M&M is “one of the most relatable characters with Gen-Z,” which is the “most anxious generation.”[2]
“The red M&M, who has shown bully tendencies in the past, will be more kind to his co-characters.” “
“Mars will also include imagery of M&Ms of all shapes and sizes, moving away from only one body size”[2]
“it will remove the prefixes from the characters’ names in order to focus on “their personalities, rather than their gender.” [2]

Key Biblical Thoughts:

worldliness
separation
conformed to this world
conformity
change
likeness to Christ
witnessing
evangelism
the church
the world — our culture/society

Sermonic Example: There are several distinct ways to use illustrative material.

(use whatever you find useful in the above details)

. . . . In the world of marketing, those changes are the result of appealing to the culture and society. It’s about the bottom line . . . . can they sell more product by changing up the M&M characters in their advertising?

In the world of Bible faith, the same approach can mark us. Can we come across more in touch with our culture and society by changing up some of the things which have historically characterized the church? . . . .

OR flipping it

. . . . We understand the changes when it comes to the Mars corporation seeking to appeal to more people in our society and culture. Being “outdated” doesn’t work very well when it comes to selling a house, or selling M&M’s . . . .

. . . . But do we understand that unless we clearly see and understand the changes in our society and culture, we will fail to make the changes that we can make and that we need to make? There are significant changes that are occurring in our world, and we need to rethink how to adapt to those changes biblically . . . .

Other Details & Links:

1. — https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/20/business/mms-characters-logo/index.html

2. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/m-ms-characters-redesigned-modern-inclusive-progressive/

— https://news.yahoo.com/m-m-characters-progressive-makeover-143640977.html

— https://whdh.com/news/mms-beloved-characters-are-getting-a-new-look/