I’m a very lucky/blessed person. I get to live in and work in an amazing place with truly fun and interesting people. I get to spend time with folks who are un-apologetically themselves – and this is something I find refreshing. In being “themselves” they are free to think deeply, feel fully and express all of that clearly. It’s nice when people don’t raise up walls that tend to frustrate and limit conversation. These friends of mine, some of whom are professionals/pastors/students/administrative assistants/financially minded folk/food industry people and everyone in between, are refreshing to me and each and every one of them encourage and challenge me in unbelievable ways.
I love being able to join in conversations without worrying about necessarily navigating particular social norms with them. However, I’ve been noticing something about myself recently – just cause I can do and say some things doesn’t necessarily mean that its the best. Let me explain, I grew up making sure to say the right things and look the right way and behave in the right fashion. I’m not dumping on that – in fact there was a time and place for a lot of that, however, I also felt really stunted at times because of that fear. To this day, I freak out if my belt doesn’t match my shoes or if my toms really are okay to wear with shorts or not – it’s really annoying.
About 12 years ago, I decided that I didn’t want to do that anymore – I didn’t want to measure up to some crazy standard. What I did want was freedom. It was rebellion in a sense, but all my measuring sticks were social or religious in nature and very few of them had to do with my true love – Christ and His Bride. As I studied Jesus more, I met a man who was pretty blunt, pretty cryptic and pretty bold about what was on His mind. That’s what I wanted. So, I’ve tried to free myself from some of those straps that I felt were keeping me bound.
However, I think I’ve missed something really big in the mix – Jesus says in the Beloved Disciples Gospel that He doesn’t “do anything that the Father hasn’t told Him to do.” He was bold and said what needed to be said but He did it through the Lens of the Father’s Best. He looked for God’s best in others and He challenged them to live into that. He wanted His followers to look past a veil of religiosity and be all the creator had planned for them. Jesus received sinners as they were and challenged them to move forward. Jesus called out the religiously powerful and challenged them to step from behind the curtain. He was totally against heavy un-carry-able burdens placed on the unknowing devout in the name of the Father. He wanted his follows to live through the lens of the Father’s BEST.
I think way to often, my generation and the ones that will follow, in an effort to correctly rebel against a false relgion of conformity and duty have forgotten this very important detail. I know I do and unfortunately I do so pretty often. I want to have that freedom and speak plainly with folks but I want to do so from the lense of God’s best. It’s not that I Should Be This Way or That, but it’s more “I Could Be So Much More.” I think this is going to be a focus for a while in my life – I wonder if any one else feels this or a similar pull?
Grace and Peace!