Ordinary?

“Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!” (Romans 12:14-16 NLT)

Are you an ordinary person? My tendency is to see myself as very ordinary, but when I look at Jesus, while He was in every way a man and, I believe, a “man’s” man, He was in no way ordinary. By “man’s” man I mean He was a man any man can relate to. He wasn’t effeminate or a sissy. Even before His grueling ministry began, He was a carpenter who got His hands dirty and knew what it was like to put in a long day’s work.

My sense is we too often “spiritualize” Jesus, refusing to see Him as just like us, yet, that’s exactly what the Scriptures teach. He had a sin nature and the capacity to sin, just like we do, but He proved that He could live without sin, setting for us an example to help us understand we, too, can choose not to sin. It’s not a requirement of our nature, but in our “ordinariness,” we too often sin without giving it a thought.

But beyond that, when we choose to be ordinary, we can very easily default to believing we have no urgency to be like Jesus because we already are like Him – we’re humans! But when we do that, we miss the point of who Jesus is and why He came. He didn’t come simply to put His stamp of approval on our humanness, but to show us in and through the way He lived His life that there’s a life that is beyond our normal, ordinary expectations – a holy, set apart, God-oriented life that can not only be more satisfying and enjoyable, but much more fruitful to His honor and fame.

Christine Caine challenged me when she wrote: “Life is too short, the world is too big, and God’s love is too great to live ordinary.” What’s the first thing that strikes you about that quote? Perhaps because I’m old, the “Life is too short” part nailed me. Why did it take me a lifetime to learn what I now know and understand when it was all available to be known and understood when I was 20? 

It’s encouraging that there are young people who ARE focusing their attention and efforts on learning about and knowing intimately the Savior. They’re avoiding “ordinary” and they want nothing to do with mediocrity. Rather than fear or avoid them, can we please applaud, encourage, and pray regularly for them!

My prayer is that they will become a new breed of believers who will not only challenge the world but ultimately win the world for Jesus. I’m asking the Lord to lead today’s younger generations to humble themselves to the point the Lord will exalt them to leadership positions all over the world, using their God-centered focus to change the world, not only for good, but for the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ.

What about those of us who are older? Ordinary isn’t for us either! We may not have a lot of energy, but we have the most important element of a powerful, effective life – JESUS! Let’s live like He’s alive, not only in general, but IN US! Let’s parade His beauty, majesty, glory, honor, and praise everywhere we go and in any circumstance we possibly can. He’s too good not to share.

In the days I have left I pray it will never be said of me (or YOU) that we lived ordinary lives or died an ordinary death. Let’s live to His glory and die in His holy service begging anyone who will listen to love and serve Him, avoiding ordinary like the plague!

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊