I have to confess something. I’ve always been envious of popular people. You know, those people who can talk to anyone at anytime about anything with perfect ease. The ones people seek out to talk to in a crowd.

I myself have never been popular. I was always the one at a party standing off in a corner looking awkward. I was the one hardly anyone talked to, and if they talked to me, the conversation ususally lasted until someone higher up in the social pecking order came along.

I’m not bashing popular people. What I am saying is that as Christians, shoudn’t we stand out rather than fit in? I am beginnning to understand that what really matters in life is not how many friends you have or who you know, but how well you love, especially when it comes to loving the unloveable and giving to those who can’t give back.

Jesus hung out with outcasts, whores, lepers, tax collectors and sinners. What society would call losers. If I claim to be a follower, shoudn’t I be seeking out the same crowd? I really don’t have answers this time. Just questions.

I’m actually okay with not being popular. I don’t have to be the life of the party. I just want to be faithful to Jesus, follow Him wherever He leads, and to be Jesus to every person I meet. Ususally, in this culture, if you take what Jesus said seriously and actually try to live it out, you will most likely not be popular.

I have a lot of unlearning to do. I have sought to curry favor with the in-crowd for so long that I have to learn to rethink in a new way. I have to put on the mind of Christ to be like Christ. It’s not easy, but following Jesus never is (and anyone who says differently is either lying or selling something).

So what’s it going to be? Popularity or faithfulness? But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.