Monday morning after four days of guests, parties, games and food. Up early and getting back to normal.Normal is not another leftover pumpkin pie binge in the morning. It’s going to bed at a decent hour. It’s writing this blog again. It’s the re-introduction of self-discipline into my routine. Normal is what defines me. I’ll go to the office and appointments will happen.
The problem is, there’s a gap between what the Bible says is normal and my life. James talks about the dangers of getting too close to the world’s definition of normal: “anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.” (James 4:4)
There’s a healthy tension in me as I consider what my normal should be.
But it’s not just a higher moral standard that may make me seem weird to others. Jesus said his normal was to restore sight to blind people, for example. I don’t encounter many blind people, but I’ve prayed for a couple of them. One got her sight back and one old guy didn’t. But that’s not my normal.
1 Peter tells me to live as an alien, a stranger here on earth. And while I feel strange a lot of the time, I also feel comfortable. It’s raining now in Georgia and I’m warm on the couch. I just had coffee. I didn’t travel or take part in Black Friday, so I’m rested.
Clearly, God loves to give us good gifts. But these gifts don’t define us. We’re spiritual beings having a temporary human experience. Our normal is a function of that spiritual universe. We find due north in his presence – as his light shines on us, we see reality around us.
And so this morning, if I’ve been out of sync, I look forward not to normal life as defined by my day’s routine, but as I’m defined in his presence. I seek God and in him I feel normal.
What is normal for you? Do you like your life as you’re living it? Does it feel like you’re in sync with the life God meant for you to live? I pray that you find him defining you as well-loved and accepted as you sense his presence.
Comments (5)
Leave a Reply
Life is not easy on earth .Praise the Lord after your wonderful Thanksgiving day the life is now normal in usa.
But daddy by His grace we live in normal.
Otherwise it is quite difficult for everyone.
…I kinda wish pumpkin pie for breakfast was normal. Sigh.
Thanks Seth. This missive has some good reminders. God has been waking me up in recent days with two primary messages. They are not unfamiliar words and I am still learning the practical applications. The first is that not all accounts are settled on this earth. Some have to wait till heaven. The second is that we are called to live with a measure of holy discontent. That means being in the middle of managing tensions rather than trying to solve problems. Some irritants and forces for the disquiet don’t go away. I am thankful for you…Karen and your family. And I really believe for good things…reconciliation and turn arounds in 2012. Love you…
Hmmm, definitely don’t feel like I’m living normal by God’s standards. I even have a hard time picturing what that would look like for an American. American’s have plenty to sacrifice, more than most. It would certainly reveal who or what our true master is.
Here in Haiti now trying to not be normal!