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Wednesday, January 05, 2005
I heard in a speech once that America comes around to admiring, and rewarding, those who "burn bridges of convention and safety and light up the sky in the process." That people look to those who many would refer to as "rabble-rousers." Think about it for a second.
Who do you really admire? Why do you admire them?
Some of the people I admire were some of my teachers and coaches.
Some of them were athletes.
Some were musicians and/or rock stars...maybe other celebrities.
Some were pastors or other "professional" Christians.
Some were figures from history.
But what was so special about the ones that I liked? I mean, everybody has a teacher they really liked more than others. Lots of people have a favorite athlete. Most really admire musical talent. There's lots of pastors to like. Everybody has those historical figures they liked better than others.
Mine were Coach Giangrosso and Mrs. Swindle.
I really admired Willie Mays Frank Robinson and Brooks Robinson (they're old major league baseball players who made the Hall of Fame)
I loved The Ramones and Kurt Cobain.
Duffy Chase and Mickey Park were highly influential in my spiritual growth.
I was always drawn to Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin and Martin Luther King, Jr.
And after I heard the speech, it dawned on me that all those people went against the grain in some way. They did things we were all used to seeing, but they did them in a unique way.
My baseball coach was huge into sacrificing yourself for the good of the team...and in the 1980's, nobody was doing it that way. Mrs. Swindle was my senior English teacher who was able to make a dork like me see the importance of reading and writing...which was definitely against the grain growing up in Alabama.
Those baseball players all did things "wrong." Their batting stances weren't "by the book" nor was how they fielded. But they took the game to new levels...ones that people criticized at the time but now try to imitate.
The Ramones were influential in changing music...as was Kurt Cobain. And at the time they were both highly criticized.
Duffy and Mickey were both teaching me about grace as a lifestyle which was unlike anything I'd ever heard before.
And I don't think I have to mention about my history choices.
But my point is that people do indeed admire those who go against the grain. Those that go against the status quo are admired.
And there's a right way to go against the grain, too. If you read Romans 12: 2, it says, "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect."
If you fail to conform to the world, then you are transforming by thinking like God thinks. In other words, the "world" and "God" are mutually exclusive...you are either thinking like one or the other.
And if you think like God you "prove" what the will of God is. Think about that for a second. How you think will change the way you act...and others will see it.
And others will see life as it was meant to be lived. The things that are good. The things that are acceptable. The things which lead to maturity. You'll be "proof."
Sounds a lot like "salt & light," right? Yeah...Jesus said that.
People will see your life...and wonder how you got so different. You'll be someone who "burns bridges of convention and safety and light up the sky in the process." You'll be one of those that others refer to as a "rabble-rouser."
And you will be "proof" and salt and light...
and God will be glorified. And others will be drawn to Him. All because of how you think. Hmmmmm.
Brent 4:02 AM
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