So I quit. I give up. I am done trying to fit into the mold. Because really, who made the mold anyways?
I am 25. Single. And not looking.
I don’t want a nice house with a white picket fence and a two car garage.
I could care less about climbing the corporate ladder or having a 6-figure income.
I want to spend my life serving the people who Jesus served-the poor, the captive, the broken, the people on the margins of society.
And I have been trying for far too long to fit into what society or the church or my friends thought I should be, but I am done.
Jesus said in John 15:18-19, ” If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.” Those are pretty harsh words and I do not believe they speak much to fitting into the status quo. Now before you go off and start a weird for Christ group (which I think is the wrong idea), remember that Jesus’ teachings were radical. He came into a society that was built on classes of people and invited the poor and the outcast into society. He stopped and paid attention to those that most people walked by. He healed the people who were cast off as no better than the dogs. He loved the sinner and tax collector and poor alike. His gospel proclaimed justice and righteousness and peace and compassion. Oh, and how did the religious society react? They hung Him on a cross.
Last week I heard a speaker say,”Followers of Jesus are a huge threat to the status quo when acting out justice” and it resonated with me. For so long I have struggled with feeling like I did not fit in. I was not part of the “in” group no matter what situation I was in. Over and over I run into situations where I just feel different and cast out and left out. And I spent a long time trying to fit in while trying to maintain a sense of independence that left me frustrated, confused, and angry. Because as much as I want to be included, I refuse to sacrifice who I am. I cannot do it. And that makes me a target for being left out.
Stop what you are doing and look up Isaiah 58. Read it and then come back. I have been reading Isaiah 58 everyday for the past week. I am 7 days into a 30 day challenge given to me. And each and every time I read those verses I am increasingly convinced that if Jesus were to come back today He would be disappointed in how we have so often twisted His message. What type of fast have we chosen? What are we spending our lives on?
How often do we leave people feeling left out and inadequate despite the fact that Jesus came proclaiming that it has NOTHING to do with us? Did you hear that?? I am loved and accepted by Christ because of who He is. Not because of anything I do or don’t do or have or don’t have. I am exactly who I am and perfect in that because Christ said so. Because He died on a cross. So really, what right do we have to create a mold or a standard which people are supposed to achieve. When did being married become the point when life begins? (and yes, that is the message that is so often preached). Just once I would love to hear a pastor get up and preach a sermon to single people and throw in a “oh and if you married, encourage your single friends.” But really, that is not even the point. It’s so much bigger then that. When did we decide we have the position to create positions? Because I am pretty sure in trying so hard to fit in, we have lost what it means to truly follow Jesus. What other reason could explain the lack of differences among church and non-church goers? We have the same divorce rate, the same teen pregnancy rate, the same cars, and houses, and tvs. We talk the same and dress the same. And when someone comes along and challenges that, we do our best to quiet them or write them off as radical or liberal.
Yet, in India you can rape a girl for the cost of a latte. 27 million people are enslaved right now as you are reading this. A generation is growing up fatherless. Sweat shops produce most of the stuff we use. The gap between rich and poor is widening. And because I am determined to change that, I am labeled. Because I will not sit by and be quiet, I will probably never fit in. I don’t really mind though because I serve a Savior that never really fit in. In fact, He came to bring a message that was subversive and radical and so against society that they did whatever they could to squash it. They killed Him, they killed His followers, they made it illegal, they burned Bibles, and they labeled them as radicals.
But last time I checked love was a pretty radical concept. Love that says I accept you. I will die for you. I will become sin so you can walk into eternity sinless. And I expect you to love as I love. Radical concept. And definitely not status quo.
