It’s almost cliche to say that as Christians we are called to be different. It’s something I grew up hearing, it’s something I’ve said. And it’s true.
It’s a salve we put on wounds and aches when our peers poke fun at us for not drinking at the party, or because we chose to abstain, or because we don’t cuss, or we choose to go to church instead of sleeping in. The words of a judgmental world can hurt. And when they do, we can always call on those friendly Sunday School words to comfort us–“We are to be in the world, not of the world.” {Referencing Romans 12:2} We are called to be different.
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Somehow, sometimes, though I feel like that idea can translate to say: We are called to be lame.
Lame, because being “different” in a Christian sense can often mean not doing things the world sees as awesome. Today, I’d like to propose we take a more positive view. I’ve come to find that a big part of being different, a big part of “not conforming to the pattern of this world” means embracing our different and leading. Timothy 4:12 says we are to…“set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.”
We are set apart for a purpose. Not just to be boring people that are easy targets. Not just to prove our allegiance to Christ. We are set apart because the world can be a dark and confusing place. But God loves the people here in the dark and confusion. So once we find the light in all this mess, in this worldly pattern of sin and slime…it’s our job to lead. First we have to recognize the pattern of the world, then find the joy in breaking the pattern and lead others to that same joy.
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God gives us a promise for when we do:
Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
And who doesn’t want that? Mastering the Art of Living means understanding God’s will. That’s the real Art of Living, right there. And He promises that when we renew our minds instead of conforming to the world…we will be able to understand His will. A will that might not make sense otherwise.
So back to leading. I know this verse doesn’t explicitly tell us to lead others along the road to renewal. But others do. {Matt 29:19-20; 1 Peter 3:15; Luke 7:22-23} If you have felt that the call to be different is a call to be boring or lame, I challenge to today to change your mind. Accept the role of different, allow yourself to become a leader–an example, an inspiration, a guiding light–to others lost in the pattern of the world. You can do it. You were called to it.
