what do you think is "normal"?
owning a house?
getting married?
having a dog?
climbing up the corporate ladder?
and what do you think is "crazy"?
at the risk of sounding elementary, maybe it's everything that's not normal...?
last week i was confronted with a completely new experience. it was something i had read about in a book, but never faced it personally. one of our refugees decided to quit his job, turn in his food stamps, give back his bus card, leave his apartment, and refuse any kind of government assistance. crazy, isn't it?!
is there anything in the world that would give a rational person the drive and motivation to do this? especially now. because it snowed last weekend, and tonight is getting down to 18 degrees. and he is, out of his volition, in the cold without a home or food or money...
well, i'll tell you the other half of the story: this man has the most sincere conviction that the reason he is on this earth is to tell others about God and his Son, Jesus Christ. and for that, he is willing to give up all things to live it out to the extreme. not for the sake of being extreme, of course, but personally, he sees God as the provider and protector of his life.
"but seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself."
matthew 6:33-34
so is it crazy? or am i not trusting God in all his promises? to be honest, i do worry about him, being out in the cold, with not very friendly people out there. but i think mary was probably worried about Jesus a lot too, not having a place to rest his head or call his home.
i have two requests:
- please pray for him with me. pray that God will keep him safe and bless his efforts.
- and maybe, rethink "normal" and be challenged that the world's definition of normal is not God's standard.
not by a long shot.
