'Ol Billy

I guess ol' Billy boy had it right all along when he said that the question was 'to be or not to be.' Those words have resonated in some places deep inside me today as I've thought about why people do the things that they do or why they don't do the things that they don't. It seems that they do or don't do whatever from a place that is either driven to be true & authentic to the nature instilled in them by the Almighty or is motivated to find solace in just being opposite that that they want most to be unlike.

I guess that the point is to be true to self at any & all cost & everything will have a way of finding a home in authenticity. If we don't learn this soon, we end up looking like or projecting something that is not necessarily us, but what we want others to see us as. The rebel or the renegade or whatever flavor of the weak becomes our masks as we look romantically to an ideal & think that we can capture it if we only wrap ourselves in the accompanying paraphernalia.

I look @ myself & see a plain white-bread cat w/no tats, piercings or whatever. It's not because I don't identify w/the feeling of wanting to take on the establishment & express my complete disdain for all that it's come to stand for, it's just that I realize now that it would be completely out of my character to do so. This hasn't stopped me from growing the occasional soulpatch or shaving my head a time or two, so I can't brag too much on my most glorious insights.

It's just that I see a lot & read a lot about contemporary, po-mo, mo, emerging, organic, hipster, cool, relevant, charismatic, spirit-filled, house, cyber or whatever type of churchs that integrate a lot of elements in the desire to reach people & that's great...but, @ what cost? Sometimes it just comes across as trying too hard to be something that it's not, which leads to all the authenticity of a street corner screaming, sign holder protesting, bible-thumping kjver w/an ounce of Christ's love in his/her heart. The intent started innocent enough, the final version however got lost in transit.

How much more effective could we all be in ministry if we chose 'to be' rather than 'not to be'? 'To be' exactly what God intended & wired us to be rather than 'not to be' what we see as wrong w/the church, christianity, spirituality or whatever. Choosing 'to be' whatever Christ has us to be rather than worrying if that's cool or relevant or hip. Truth be known, when we choose to truly 'be', we may never be cool or hip, but we will always be relevant.

I've had to come to grips w/what it means for me 'to be' lately as those close to me & those that think that they are have called me into question as to my call in this existence. In 1 sense this saddens me, but in another it lets me know that I'm being obedient above all else. I still listen to every word that comes my way, I just know that I've got to measure it up against the call 'to be' that's on my life.

So don't try too hard. Get real. Choose 'to be' rather than 'not to be'. That's the only way that you'll ever be capable of being used. Wear your hip shirts & jeans, grow that tired gottee & spike your hair, jamming out to all the Chris Tomlin that you can find...but only if that is what you are called 'to be'...