I want to live a radically uncommon life. I want to live so differently everyone takes notice. I don’t care if they love me or hate me, I just don’t want them to be able to ignore me. I say this not because I want to be noticed, but so Jesus would be glorified. I want my life to be so different people must acknowledge I am living for a purpose different from that of societal norms. Too often we as Christ followers look no different than our contemporaries.
We allow ourselves to be so assimilated within our culture no one would ever know we live for a higher calling and purpose. This isn’t how it’s supposed to be. Peter, one of Jesus’s closest friends, said we are a chosen people, called out of the darkness to walk in the light (1 Peter 2:9). Why do we insist on blending with the shadows when we have been called to shine gloriously?
What would it look like to live a radically uncommon life? I think we would stop pursuing the things the world finds important. Money, status, possessions, comfort, security, pleasure – Satan uses all these things to distract us from our mission. I do believe God can and will bless us with some measure of each of these things at various seasons in our lives. They aren’t necessarily wrong to have, but none of them should be pursued. Only Jesus is worthy of our pursuit. That’s a bit radical. It’s very uncommon to live life that way. If we would cease seeking after these things, we could live a radically uncommon life.
What if we focused each day on living in a manner both radical and uncommon? What if it was the lens through which we viewed the world? Imagine your day if at every opportunity you chose the radical or uncommon choice. To whom would you show radical kindness? For what would you stand with uncommon courage? Do you sense how exciting a life lived like this could be? Never again would we have a mediocre, run-of-the-mill day. Instead, every hour would burst with excitement as we seek opportunities to respond in radical and uncommon ways.
Such a life is possible. I know this because Jesus lived a radically uncommon life. Almost everything He did defied social norms and expectations. His every word and deed exploded out of love. To love others as ourselves is not only part of the greatest commandment (Matthew 22:37-39), it is also the key to living a radically uncommon life. So, yes, while it may be the ultimate cliché, love is indeed the answer. The question is irrelevant; the answer is love. Do you know the best thing about love? The more you give away, the better you will feel about who you are becoming. It’s not why we choose to love, it is simply the marvelous byproduct. I want to love like Jesus loved, to live as He did. I want to live a radically uncommon life. How about you?