When we were teenagers, all we wanted was to fit in. Life seemed unlivable if you woke up with a pimple on your forehead or you could not find a date for prom. That meant that if we could not cover it up or find someone to take, we would stand out. We would not be normal.
What is normal, why is it deemed so valuable, and how is being different dangerous?
Nelson Mandela wisely said we are not afraid of being inadequate; we are afraid of being extraordinary or powerful beyond measure. Furthermore, Joyce Meyer reminds us that many are called, but few are chosen; the reason being we cannot bear the thought of being responsible for achieving or bringing about the highest good for the common man.
God does not call us to be normal. Jesus himself was not normal. In fact, nobody mentioned in the Bible was normal:
Noah’s building an ark because of rain, something humans had never experienced, was not normal to those who knew him. When the rain finally came, everyone but Noah’s family perished, and through Noah came the Messiah.
Abraham’s leaving behind his family, religion and homeland was not normal. Because of his obedience, he was blessed with a son in his old age and innumerable descendants.
God’s calling Moses to liberate his people and performing miracles to Pharaoh was not normal. In fact, Moses tried to convince God that he was unqualified for the job. On the contrary, when he obeyed God, he was one of God’s most powerful leaders.
God’s calling Gideon to deliver his people from the Midianites was not normal, seeing as he was the weakest in his family. Gideon thought God was mistaken but his army of 300 triumphed over the vast Midianite army.
God’s using Elijah’s waterlogged offering as a means of showing his power over Baal was not normal.
God’s command for Hosea to marry a prostitute, and later a second command to redeem her, was not normal, for it was designed to be a stench to the Israelite community and a sign that God would not relent in pursuing his chosen people.
Jesus’ birth from a virgin was not normal but it fulfilled prophecy and woke up many Israelites from their spiritual deathbeds.
Jesus did not call anyone to be normal and God certainly did not design us to be either. Humans are the only animals on earth that have souls, or a sense of what is right and wrong. That in itself is not normal.
Many scientists and world-renowned thinkers would like to believe we are the products of evolution but God did not design men to fully understand his creation. Though we try to add science to explain how the heavens and earth came to be, it does not compute. What many do not realize is the missing components are faith and omnipotence, not science and logic.
In today’s culture, being abstinent or celibate is considered abnormal. Even being responsible or frugal are dying character traits. John Piper has challenged numerous people with his sermon on living a chosen life and not wasting time. Will you choose to waste the life you received from grace, or will you accept your role as being chosen by God?
Normality is an endless road – you can pursue it till your heart is content, but you will never reach its end.
