So I started my day today thinking……does my name or title describe or define who I am? Am a marketplace influence and a change agent, however off late I have dropped the term radical because am nowhere near radical
I have a problem. I am a people-pleaser.My desire to make everyone happy came innocently enough. In church we were told that Jesus was nice to people, a sentiment I had to revisit in my adulthood and found to be skewed at best and erroneous at worst.
Well…I am tired of being a nice , good Christian… Mark 10:18 says this “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good–except God alone. One of the ways of looking at this whole ‘good Christian thing’ is to realize that even Jesus didn’t accept being called good.
Because it comes with a responsibility; to be good. And I don’t think He wanted to be good since he threw guys out of the temple and did other radical stuff that do not necessarily fall under good.
And it’s been a sad story of playing as per the rules. I realized how much I wanted to be a good Christian. Where I don’t offend anyone, after all that is what a good Christian is all about right? Playing safe….. Being nice and making sure you offend no one. So the world goes on without checks because good men and women want to be nice and be loved and be accepted for being cool.
Oftentimes at the expense of our own self, we overbook, over commit stretch ourselves In the name of being a good Christian. We are all certainly called to sacrifice for the greater good, something is radically wrong when the majority of Christians are rushed, tired and living in a fog.
This being the last post for this year, I don’t feel like being good at all even in the coming year. Good means I have a preset mind-set of not offending anyone and having a responsibility NOT to radical stuff or anything that would be seen to be out of the ordinary.
I can imagine the rich young ruler in Mark 10 so surprised and shocked…..the guy was appalled; Jesus was supposed to be a ‘good’ teacher right? So what’s the fuss about ‘don’t call me good?’ he was a disappointed young man because he had expectations from a Good teacher.
This is what am saying I don’t want the society having preset conditions and expectations on my being good. I need flexibility to grow and impact in a Godly way not good way. I need room to be radical, to think outside the ‘good’ box. I want to allow God to use me thereby giving fruits of Godliness not niceness. Niceness won’t rebuke, niceness will take all in the name of sacrifice, niceness will take all that comes and in the end I will be a cranky, tired Christian. Am called to be better than that.
My favorite saying of all time which I will repeat today is that a ship is safe on the harbor, but that’s not what ships are built for. My challenge to self and to all of us is to get into the waters and stop playing safe.
However if you chose to continue playing safe well…. Too bad am not going to be joining you because I am not nice.
PS: I’ve got no apologies for offending…am done playing safe.
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MARKET PLACE 