Day 3041 of the 7 day Bible verse challenge.

2 Corinthians 5:14 NIV

If it were up to us, sure, we’d probably eventually agree to do as so many are asking of us and just shut up and go away.

Problem is that it ain’t up to us. Not anymore. No, doing as the world wants us to do is one of the many considerations laying broken and bleeding on the ground behind us. It’s not the only one though, it definitely has company. It has been left lying beside things such as worldly success, material wealth, physical comfort and even concern for personal well-being! So, contrary to common opinion, we’re not just being mean when we refuse to do what the world’s asking us to do. We literally just can’t help but be different. Because we now know normal is pretty boring.

No, there's nothing normal about who we become along the path leading us unto the fringes of this world. And that's one of the most beautiful parts of this gift we’ve been given!

But, everybody wants to be normal. Yay normal. Jazz hands for normal.

The outlook of many in this place is placed upon this perception of what's perceived of as being normal. Everything done is done in such a way that tries to firmly adhere to the normalized expectations of life which have apparently been widely decided upon by somebody or a bunch of somebodies. As for who decided what's normal and what isn't, not really sure. It must have been done without everyone getting a say, at least I know I didn't. You probably didn't either. Christ tried to have a say in reminding us what's right and true, but the world tossed that aside pretty quick.

No, around here we make our own normal and just tell everyone else what their life ought to look like if they're to live a life that fits, that belongs, that accomplishes something worth having been accomplished. 2.5 kids, white picket fence, mini-van and soccer cleats. Though I still haven't seen too many .5 kids. Not really sure where they're keeping all the halves but someone should probably look into that. Maybe they need help. Or perhaps they could help a boring, faltering, failing family with only two kids finally get over that line where they could be normal.

Yeah, down here jobs must become careers, dating gives way to marriage, friends move on, family stays behind, dreams dwindle and plans must now be planned with a little more baggage to consider. Especially with a half kid, can only imagine all that entails. The questions alone are mind-boggling. Is it a top/bottom situation or more of a left/right thing?

Anyway, normal life.

How exciting it must be to have it all planned out before you even know who you are. And that's the death so many are living. They never got to find who they are, whose they are. Instead, hammer down, push on through, ignore the signs and run all the lights. We've got finish lines to cross and time's ticking. The world's watching. Everyone's judging. What are they seeing? Are they agreeing? Sure hope I can make everyone proud of becoming a person that looks like everyone else.

Somehow that's normal. And to do anything else brings about this verdict of being all but criminally insane. Not married by 25: Loser. Not 6-7 into an impressive career with a great retirement plan: Lazy. Still no kids: Disappointment. Career change: Irresponsible. Need a new hobby: Too much time to spare. No house: Drain on the system. Junker in the driveway: Missing the winning way of life. Not settled down: Dreamer. Not partying away the weekend: Loner. No savings: Worthless. No plans: Pointless. No goals: No purpose.

But what if our goals are merely different? What if our hopes are placed in things not found on the map drawn by whoever decided where everyone should go? What if a fast car really only burns more gas going to the same places as that clunker that everyone sneers at? What if our best way to live a life of impact doesn’t bring a title in which we boast? What if we’re not worried about making sure our headstone says something poignant as it weathers away long after we’ve moved on?

What I wish the world could see is that life isn't defined by a society that assumes a best life, a perfect life can be lived according to the standardized procedures and postures of a people assuming themselves able to figure out something we've not done before. Sure, there's wisdom passed down from those more aged. There's a list of things that worked and brought a great many a great amount of happiness before. There are the studies done that show how a person is more likely to find more enjoyment in their life.

But the fact is that each of us are on a path that literally nobody else has ever or will ever walk. My thoughts are not the same as those considered by anyone else. My past doesn't read the same as the person sitting behind me in the drive-thru. My present is different from the person buying their groceries at the exact same moment. My hopes are not the same as those of someone younger than me. My accomplishments are not as impressive as those who've had more years so far.

Life is a different road for each of us. There is no normal. There's just life. It's just a collection of days all smashed together that encompasses a specific amount of time, which is yet again different for everyone.

But what's not different is that time wasted is time that will not be recovered. And so it's an entirely personal responsibility to live one's own life however one sees fit. Allowing anyone or anything to pressure or instill expectation is to invite external input from a source which will not be present when we find ourselves all alone kneeling before God awaiting the verdict as to where we spend forever. Yes, these lives are long. Eternity is longer.

And regardless as to which one a person may decide to focus on, there's a line in between them that we will all pass over. And that line is death.

Yes, the big scary. The freaky, worrisome, troubling, unavoidable, big blowout of life. Death. All this ends, and when it does, all we've done will be forgotten. All the perfectly plotted plans, the big milestones, the career accolades, the massive houses, the fancy cars, the impressive titles, the jealousy of those who we're beating in race nobody can win. It will all be over. And when that day comes, it doesn't matter how perfectly we managed to live.

What will matter is whether or not we managed to live.

Truth be told, that day is approaching at a speed in which we cannot imagine. And as it grows nearer, the opportunity for us to break away from 'normal' and follow what means the most to us is also running short on time. I firmly believe that each and every person in this place has a purpose given uniquely to them for the specific span they spend upon this ground. But sadly, that purpose is so often lost between the cracks of what everyone else says is normal.

Friends, forget normal.

We've been handed the chance at something far more amazing, far more meaningful, far more important than the mundanity of normal life, or whatever someone else may say we must be in order to belong. We have to stop trying so hard to make our lives look like they belong here. We do not. This is not home. This is not forever. This is merely the opening scene of a story which will play out until time runs out. And I'm not talking about the 70-80 they say we can expect.

I'm talking about forever.

Look, I know I'm a wildcard. I’m what many could rightly consider a loser, a freak, a nutjob wacko who's out here wasting His life accomplishing nothing of any meaning to the vast majority of the world. I know that I'll likely move on from here with few who knew me left behind to notice I'm gone. I know that my name will vanish from the lips and minds of whoever happens to still know it. I know that this life ends in dust. So I'll not live it assuming it can be more.

That mindset brings with it this understanding that who I am and what I do makes no sense to anyone else. But even beyond that, who I am and what I am trying to do does not fit the mold that has been deemed normal. And anything in this world that doesn't fit where it's told to stand will be the lucky winner of some fantastic prizes.

They'll be labeled insane, out of touch, behind the times, completely outside their mind. They will be ignored, rejected, denied, overlooked and unappreciated. They will wander the outskirts scraping by on all that nobody else wants. They will not be seen, not be heard, will not matter. Because they're not normal in a place where all that matters is that which is normal.

But another thing that I wish everyone could see is that it is in no way a detriment to be labeled or judged when said labels and opinions are given from a world such as this.

No, it's an honor to be so different from this darkening place that hatred is all society can manage to offer. Not because it's fun, enjoyable, a knee-slapping good time. It's an honor because it means we're different. It means we live for something more than the trophies and tragedies of a normal life. It means that changes have begun that are teaching us to see more than the horizon of a life that's going to be left behind.

There is truly a great deal of things that can be found and are being enjoyed in this world. But there is one thing that nobody will ever find here. And that's a way to flip the script to where death becomes the beginning of life. And it's that gift that once one has found and is found in Christ simply changes everything. Because in Him we have the promise that should we dare embrace dying to self, dying to this world, dying to all that is normal, we shall find new life on the other side of that stone.

And on that other side of the stone, life doesn't end.

Would someone please tell me how a mini-van and a desk with your name engraved on a little piece of wood can possibly compete with that.

That's why, despite an influx of invitations to just shut up and go away and leave the world alone with all this Jesus stuff, we can't. We won't. Ain't interested. Why? Because far too many people are still living a death when life is free for the taking. And for us to remain silent, though we have the right, is simply not an option that registers anymore. Not because we're freaks or weirdos or losers or fear-mongers or filled with assorted phobias.

No, simply because, like Christ showed us, we hope to somehow help the world see Him too so that they too can find life beyond the death they've always known.

That's not being hateful, judgmental, inconsiderate or insolent. It's a kind of love we've been shown and are now called to share. A love built on the truth that slapped us silly so that we'd stop being so stupid. A love that opened our eyes to the emptiness of a life lived seeking to fill it with junk that is headed to the same dust to which we're returning to someday. A love that will not settle for normal, but will flip the tables of all that’s being done so that all that’s being done can no longer keep us from what He’s done.

Friends, the fact is that life’s biggest opponent is death. It’s the final level of this video game many are trying to play. It’s the giant lurking over our shoulder just waiting to be given the go-ahead. And the truth is that we're all running from it one way or another. Many live trying to avoid it, to run from it, to find a way around it. And ultimately, all those attempts will prove feeble, futile, fatal. But in Christ we have the chance to run from death as we leave it behind and chase down this gift of eternal life for the rest of forever.

And it's that hope that I want everyone to feel, to experience, to know for themselves. Because I know what it's like to be afraid to lose something. And having lost pretty much everything I never wanted to let go, I can finally see the freedom found in having no roots left in soil that's passing away. That’s the love that compels us to go and speak, share, shout this Name that is the only hope that has proven so big that even death runs and hides.

Please understand that those of us who are seeking, trying, failing and trying yet again to serve Christ and share the Gospel are not doing so because we're weird or broken or judgmental or angry (though sometimes that one does pop up, guess the weird could be argued too). No, it's only because we've found a message that allows us to skip to the scary part so that we can get it out of the way and move on to the joy and hope and excitement that so many others are running short on in their lives spent running away from that which we can’t avoid.

Friends, in Christ we have the gift, the opportunity, the chance to choose our death. It's either to something or from something. And it's either now or forever. Call me whatever you want. Call Christians whatever you desire. Label us all anything that makes you feel better about the fact that running from death in a race none of us can win. Just know that should you ever tire of running, us freaks will be happy to tell you what we've found on this side of normal.

May not seem it now, but it is far more exciting on this side. Problem is that that's something everyone has to see for themselves. Just please be careful how long you choose to stay blinded to anything other than what’s normal. You might end up missing out on a love that literally none of us can live without.

That’s all for today, I’ll not bother you any further.

For now.

#LeaveNoSoulUntold