Day 2715 of the 7 day Bible verse challenge.

2 Samuel 6:22 NIV

There’s a rather sad reality that I believe we’re seeing unfold these days. I'm afraid that we're losing our willingness to look like fools. We're losing the courage to be judged for living with a childlike faith that seems silly to much of the world around us. We're losing the joy, the excitement, the peace of this Gospel that we've been given. We're giving them all away in this ongoing effort to satisfy this innate desire to fit some mold and blend into the crowd and simply live with a faith that's basically unnoticeable to those around us. We're becoming scared, but what is it that we're scared of?

I think one of our biggest fears when it comes to our faith is the realization that it doesn't make sense to those on the outside. It makes us look foolish to live our lives according to what many consider a bunch of antiquated ideas and nonsensical rules and this fairy tale of a story that only a child would believe in. There has been so much doubt infect the hearts of humanity that those who step out on a ledge and proclaim their faith in something that seems impossible are met with all of this judgement and ridicule, and admittedly, those things aren't enjoyable to endure.

But are they worth tossing aside our faith? Are the opinions of a bunch of hateful souls worth watering down our beliefs? Is the risk of being called names and cast out of society and looked down upon as some foolish children worth letting go of the promise we've been granted through the cross of Christ? Does it really matter what anyone else thinks of us? And as puffed up as we feel saying that we don't care about what others may think, are we really willing to live a life that testifies to that statement?

Are we willing to walk on the edge of this world chasing something that we'll never find here? Are we willing to walk away from the way of life that's been deemed normal in this search for a life of faith that's anything but? Are we willing to boldly proclaim our faith in, our reliance upon, and our relationship with a Savior that much of the world denies the very existence of? Are we willing to be seen as those Jesus freaks who spend their lives living for something more than what everyone else is pursuing? Are we willing to face what His disciples faced, because many thought they were nuts too!

Friends, I think we've been taught for so long that maturity manifests to this solemn, grim, somber, and humor-less existence completely void of anything that could come anywhere close to being considered silly or foolish. And as we grow up in this society that teaches us that play and enjoyment and lightheartedness are things that must be left behind along the path to adulthood, we buy in. We accept it. To quote one of the goofy movies my dad watches from time to time, we lose our dinosaur. We forget those kids we used to be because that kind of childishness isn't welcome past a certain age.

I'm profoundly guilty of this myself. As I've gone further into reading Scripture and thinking about all the concepts and lessons held within, I've found myself with this stern and serious outlook on nearly everything. I have to do better. I have to try harder. I have to put forward this image of a tough and sturdy follower of Christ who is completely immune to struggle and above enjoyment. I've forgotten what Christ Himself tells us in Matthew 10:15, "anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." I think so many of us are trying to adult our way into Heaven, and friends, it's not going to work.

There has to be this expectation in the impossible. There has to be a joy that can't be measured or restrained. There should be an excitement that comes in thinking about this gift we've been given and the amazing promises that lay beyond the doors that the cross has opened. Because without that childlike wonder and the sense of imagination, what can our faith really be? If we're not following Christ with this dependent expectation of what He will do next, then what exactly are we doing and why are we doing it? Are we just in this for the reward up ahead? Or are we living with constant joy at the countless blessings that are being revealed in our lives every day?

Don't get me wrong, much of the truth found in God's word is very serious and should only be taken as such. There is a heavy responsibility that comes with repentance and upholding His calling to go into all the world and share the Good News of the Gospel. There are a lot of very weighty aspects of our faith and we can't afford to take them lightly. But there needs to be this balance between being seen as stoic soldiers of Christ and as joyful children of God. If we lose either for any reason then we're missing half the purpose of our faith.

You see, it's not just about telling everyone about the dire condition of our lost and wandering souls. It's not all about the deadly dangers that exist for those who choose to deny Christ and forsake His offering of salvation and forgiveness. We should also be witnesses to the amazing joy found in that gift. We should be the ones who reflect a light into this world that brings inspiration and hope to those who are lost and hurting. We should bring both encouragement to fight against the sinful ways of a fallen world and also an encouragement to celebrate the freedom and hope we've found in Jesus.

As I said in yesterday's post, this world is going to judge us and hate us and persecute us no matter what we do. Stop letting this miserable place drag you down and force you to be miserable too. We can't hamstring our faith in order to appease those who simply want to be angry and upset. We can't withhold the light that we've been called to reflect out of fear of what those who are comfortable in the dark may do in retaliation. We can't allow ourselves to adopt some kind of hollow faith that doesn't rock the sinking ship that our society has become.

Rather, we need to boldly go where so few are willing to tread. We need to live our lives in such a way that both profess our joyous hope in Christ’s salvation and also the desperate desire for everyone to find their way to humility that gives way to repentance that helps us fight off the sinful urges that are contending for our souls. We need to walk the narrow path, but not solemnly like some sort of hopeless wanders who know nothing of joy, but as excited servants who are thankful for the opportunity to be different.

Friends, please find the courage to be seen as fools. Find the willingness to be ridiculed and mocked for believing in what many consider a tall tale. Find the joy in knowing that nothing this world does or says or thinks holds any sway in the scope of eternity. Because the fact is that there will be some who hate us and our faith because it makes them uncomfortable, but there will also be those who appreciate our willingness to throw off the heaviness of this world and dance our way through life expressing a joy that much of this world simply can’t understand let alone offer.

Some will refuse to understand the hope and peace we've found because their hardened hearts can only comprehend doubt, but others may find a sense of strength to fight their way out of the darkness into Christ's light because they've seen us do the same. We're not here to allow the doubtful and the hate-laden to hinder our faith or the expression thereof. We're here to live our lives as living testimonies to the inexpressible joy we've found knowing that there are many in this place who are looking for such a thing.

It's time we stop worrying about our dignity as defined and weighed by a world that in reality knows very little of dignity. We need to stop letting others tell us what's acceptable and what's normal and what they're willing to abide. We're not here to conform our lives to the sad standard to which many have devolved into accepting. We're here to show others that this faith of ours is truly something special. So be undignified my friends. Be foolish. Be silly little kids if that's what the world wants to call us. We're not here to put on a show that pleases the masses or coincides with their desires. We're here to put on a show that brings glory to God and it's time we stop letting this angry world force us to keep the curtains closed.

#LeaveNoSoulUntold