by Richelle Hecker

God calls us not to blend in.

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

My daughter snapped this picture at an aquarium in Florida. I love how this guy is camouflaged to match the rock he’s hiding in. His colors match the colors around him, and even his face is lumped up to simulate the texture of the rock. Interesting how everything about him is made to blend in and keep him safe.

I admit I’m glad my face isn’t lumpy like my surroundings, but I do sometimes wish I did not stand out so much from everything around me. At other times, I am thankful that my children and I are so different. When my children talk about what goes on around them, and the way others speak or act, I am pleased that they choose to make alternative decisions.

“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.”
Romans 12:1-2 The Message

We feel safer matching up with our surroundings. When at work and with our friends and families, we keep the peace by conforming. We don’t have to speak up to be considered controversial. When we respond to a situation differently, we are accused of judging the reactions of others. Afraid of this, we begin to act and sound like everyone else, trying to communicate love and acceptance.

However, this is not what God called us to do. He desires us to conform to Him and not this world. There is no better example of stand out unconditional love than Jesus Christ.

Boldly, be like Him.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado