You don't have to be like the world

Personal Photo: Max Lucado’s “God’s Inspirational Promise Book”

One of the best Christian authors, in my opinion, is Max Lucado. Have you ever read any of his devotionals or his books? My family owns almost all of them and my parents gave Josh, Jason, and me some copies when we were growing up. They still make their way into our stockings or in our 'just because I'm thinking of you' gift stacks. Out of the many Lucado books that now sit on my bookshelf and around my home, my favorite one to open up is "God's Inspirational Promise Book." My parents gave it to me before I was in high school, and it holds a special place in my heart. Within the red binding, Lucado has organized promises from God throughout the Bible into applications for different ways in which we might need reminders throughout the day to day. I continue to open my little red book anytime I need a reminder or am struggling with something, but one of my favorite pages is page 151. On page 151, Lucado addresses worldliness, and he says the following: "You don't have to be like the world to have in impact on the world. You don't have to be like the crowd to change the crowd."

Lucado uses John the Baptist as a reference point in his note about worldliness, encouraging us to consider how he would be an outcast in almost every crowd today. Regardless of the fact that John the Baptist stood out, he remained aligned with God and His word. In this way, we can see where Lucado's quote fits. However, Lucado takes it one step further and encourages us to relate to this feeling of worldliness and how we do not fit in. He explains that we do not fit in with the world because we are seeking to be like God, not like the world. John 15:19 tells us that "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." We are chosen out of this world because Jesus called us to be with Him. I have previously discussed the concept of not fitting in, as it is one that deeply resonates with me. However, in this week's article, I want to take the quote from Lucado's book, which I have on a letterboard in my home, and apply it to the moments in-between those of glory and disappointment.

Often, we can look back at our lives and think of times that were horribly desperate and sad, and times that were filled with joy and gratitude. I am hopeful that most of us are quick to remember the happy memories over the poor ones. Regardless, we often dismiss the in-betweens, where we are simply doing our day-to-day routine and nothing spectacularly memorable happens. I think it is easy to ignore these periods of times when we try to reflect on how far we have come, how much we have grown, and what our next goals are. Truly, compared to our mountainous achievements, they can seem dismissible. However, I beg to argue that point. The reason I want to explore the in-betweens is because they are some of the most important parts of why we are here on Earth, which comes down to the fact that the Holy Spirit dwells within us.

The Holy Spirit dwelling within us is an important point in realizing the impact of our in-betweens because when the Holy Spirit finds a home in our hearts, we can begin growing and harvesting the fruit of the Spirit. Paul talks to us about the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5, telling us that "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23)" Each one of these fruits of the Spirit is invaluable, as they are gifts from God that help us demonstrate His love for us, through us. Each fruit of the Spirit holds its own value in our hearts, but one thing they all have in common is the application of selflessness. None of the fruits of the Spirit are nourished or harvested by being selfish, and in fact, they all require a certain level of selflessness. In order to have any fruits of the Spirit, we need to set aside our pride, our entitlement, our arrogance, and so many other characteristics built into our sinful flesh to let the Holy Spirit guide our hearts towards these virtues.

Now I want to jump back to our in-betweens. The in-between moments in our lives are not times when the spotlight is on us, nothing particularly exciting is happening, and we find ourselves doing the average activity. Usually, these activities are things like grocery shopping, listening to our child talk about their school days, going to work, filling up our gas tank, talking with our friends and/or siblings, going to a doctor's appointment, driving somewhere, folding our family's laundry, and so on. And while these tasks might appear seemingly minute, they actually are masked opportunities to nourish and harvest our fruits of the Spirit.

What do I mean by this? Well, moments when the spotlight is not on us, when our lives are going just fine, and when we are in a routine, are all chances for us to be selfless. Romans 12:2 tells us that "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." When we leave space for the Holy Spirit to work in us, rather than leaving space for the world to diminish the opportunities to do God's work, we can begin to see the bearing of the fruit of the Spirit. Only He can make them grow within us, through the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ, and it can make us a tool for God's glory. Think of all the opportunities there are to nourish the fruit of the Spirit within the tasks I listed above. We can practice kindness when we check out at the grocery store; we can practice love when we pay attention and value our child's input; we can practice self-control at work when we are around those who are disgruntled or stressed; we can practice gentleness when we interact with our friends and/or siblings. The list goes on. My point is that we can use the in-betweens in our life as a chance to make a difference in someone else's. We can make the most difference in someone else's life when we are not so focused on our own ups and downs, and we leave space for the Holy Spirit to do His work in us and through us.

When we do this, when we use our average days to nourish and harvest the fruit of the Spirit, we find ourselves able to make a difference. God's love changes people. God's love changed you and me and we can use our almost dismissible moments and turn them into opportunities for spiritual growth and nurturing. We can be a vessel for God's love to change someone else. In this way, it brings us back to Lucado's quote, right where we started. We already know we don't fit in. We feel the truth of not belonging so many times throughout our lives. However, just because we do not fit in, does not mean we cannot make a difference. We do not have to be like the world to change the world. It is empowering, isn't it? Our in-betweens could be a low period for someone we come into contact with. Our in-betweens could be times where someone is really excited about an accomplishment and has no one to share the joy with. You could be someone's first customer and by practicing patience, you help them gain courage. You could be the safest place for your son or daughter and have the power to help them grow into a strong child of God. You could be the person that lets a newly licensed driver onto the highway and reduces their stress. Our seemingly dismissible moments are tiny chances for any of the fruits of the Spirit to sprout and take hold. We might feel as though they are part of our routine, but I cannot stress how important it is to not dismiss the ways in which God might use us to make an impact. Matthew 5:15-16 tells us that "You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead, they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." Jesus is telling us here to make the most of our opportunities to give glory to God, and to spread it like a light in the world. It makes our in-between moments seem more special, doesn't it?

I think it is fair to say that we notice when someone is kind to us, is patient with us, is gentle in their guidance, and so on. We can recognize the fruit of the Spirit in others, when the Holy Spirit is dwelling in a peer. They make our days better and we smile when we are around them. It could be the stranger who complimented you. It could be the person who let you go in line in front of them. It could be the friend who checked in on you. It could be your parents who want to catch up. The possibilities are endless; however, we have the ability to recognize the difference it makes in our day. In the same way, it is quite obvious when someone is not leaving room for the Holy Spirit. Quick to anger, rude from the start, distant and cold. We encounter so many bitter souls on a weekly basis. Lots of people get so caught up in their routines, or they are at such a low point, that they dismiss the chances for the fruit of the Spirit to grow and stifle the Holy Spirit's nurturing. However, even these interactions are opportunities for us to let the Holy Spirit dwell within us and nourish the fruit of the Spirit.

Romans 12:2 tells us to "See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him." Here we might be reminded of our lack of belonging in the world, but it points out that it is God's love that has set us apart. God's love is with us through every up and down, through every in-between. In this way, we can see how the blessing of being God's children brings with it the gift of the Holy Spirit finding a home in our hearts. When He is there, He can nurture the fruits of the Spirit within us and transform the benign in-between moments in our lives into a chance to make a difference in someone else's for God's glory. We do not have to be like the world to change the world.