The other day, I read of a lady who just purchased a new Mercedes. The news cast wasn’t that she got the Mercedes, it was actually because she crashed it and held up rush-hour traffic . She was later quoted to say that, “her life was ruined because her car was totaled.” Worry over her car, not the fact that she made lots of people miss family dinner that night, leaves me to believe that that car made her feel larger than life.
I am sure other people will say that they feel larger than life after completing something great, something very challenging, like getting a diploma, or maybe something they were given, like an award or had a child. Getting things.
Larger than life.
Have you ever felt larger than life?
Listen to this quote, “People, can’t you see, how your life affects my reality? Every time I’m down, you can make it right, and that makes you larger than life.”
Those lyrics are of course courtesy of one of my very favorite bands, don’t laugh too hard, but the group is the Backstreet Boys. Yes, yes, yes, one of those “boy bands” from the late 90’s.
Anyway, the Backstreet Boys are genius, no doubt, and they got something going on with those lyrics, wouldn’t you say?
Now, true, you could say that Christians are naturally “larger than life” in that we outsmarted life, and death, through the power of Jesus Christ and are then restored to eternal life with our Heavenly Father. And, true, God is of course larger than life, as He is the ruler of all life.
“Can’t you see how YOUR life affects my life/my reality?”
Actor Leonardo Dicaprio is most known for playing Jack in the 1999 James Cameron film, Titanic. But more recently, Dicaprio did a film called Blood Diamond, one I caution viewers to watch due to its graphic nature, but in brief, Blood Diamond brings the very real life dangers of diamond mining in terrorist run regions in Africa to the spot light. Young boys, as young as six years old, are stolen from their families and forced into slavery by working and killing for War Lords in search of raw diamonds to be processed and sold right here in America.
“Can’t you see how YOUR life affects my reality?”
Taking the extra care to make sure that your “rock” that you so glamorously wear, came from a conflict-free environment – you my friend, are making sure that your life, your actions, positively affect the lives of others. And in this particular case, saves lives too.
Have you heard the latest "Christian" trend? Some "Christian" circles are not referring to themselves as Christians anymore, but as Christ Followers. "Oh, no, man, I am not a Christian, I am a Christ follower." The reason for this impromptu name-change is because of course, that recruiting people into the Christian faith is becoming more difficult. Why? Because Christians give Christianity a bad name.
Imagine that.
Imagine that.
In the book, I am Fine with God, It’s Christians I Can’t Stand the authors take a look into why some people are turned off to Jesus by the current examples of His church. You all know the reasons, which include hypocrisy amongst believers, pressures of financial giving, and on and on.
Remember those lyrics again?
“People, can’t you see, how your life affects my reality? Every time I’m down, you can make it right, and that makes you larger than life.”
It doesn’t say that you will make it right, it says what?, you CAN make it right. If you choose to.
One of my friends introduced me to a blogsite written by a stay-at-home mom (www.mycharmingkids.com), and every Monday she blogs on the topic of, NOT ME Mondays. NOT ME Mondays gives moms a chance to let other people in on their more “eccentric” side by confessing to things that they probably wouldn’t of otherwise.
For example, one mom wrote, “I’m am NOT one of those moms always trying to make homemade food, to the point where last week I tried to make homemade fish sticks, and come dinnertime that night, had my husband go pick-up a pizza, but not before taking out the trash. NO, NOT ME!”
See how it works?
Well, here is my contribution to MckMama’s NOT ME Mondays, (granted, I am not a mom, and it’s not Monday):
I am NOT one of those people who think that they can change the whole world by myself, where I work tirelessly to the point of exhaustion where I would actually consider going to get those thrown-out fish sticks just so I wouldn’t have to decide what was for dinner. NO, NOT ME!
Fhew! That does feel better!
I look forward to the day when those so-called “Christ Followers” blog their own NOT ME Monday: maybe something like, “No, it wasn’t us who thought we should turn our backs on our fellow Christian brothers and sisters when things got hard, and outsiders misunderstood our mission. NO, NOT US!”
If you choose to hang in there and make things right, you will become larger than life.
However, spoiler alert! There is no “quick” fix for this. You can’t be an unconscious consumer by thinking that cheaper products are always better. But, instead, you have to think, "better for who?"
And have you ever considered that Starbuck’s coffee costs so much more than other coffee, because Starbucks is committed to buying only “fair-trade” items for their stores? Believe it or not, they aren’t in the business of ripping people off. Brings the phrase, “You get what you pay for,” to a whole new meaning, doesn’t it? In this case, you are paying for reasonable working wages in places where that is almost unheard of.
I will confess to you that lots of times, I am left with a “what’s the point” attitude? What’s the point guys? Nothing I do seems to be working. Nothing I try seems to stick. No one would notice if I stopped doing what I was doing.
Poor me. Right?
Thankfully, I am in good company of my woes. Jesus was misunderstood. Jesus was always called out.
And, because of Him, my motto has become, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”
“Be the change you wish to see in the world.” Why? Because that’s what Christ did, and Christians, like the name, follow Christ.
You know, I may tire from doing God’s work from time to time, and think that I am achieving nothing out of it, but just think of how God feels!
Don’t give up. Be the change. Live the change. Remember Christ’s change. Keep choosing to do things right and to do right things.
Have you ever felt larger than life?
I do, knowing that I am apart of the Body of Christ.
I do, knowing that I am apart of the Body of Christ.
