A new “new normal”
I don’t want to go back to normal.
OK, OK, OK, I admit: the old normal had some perks — just like the new normal does. On the one hand, I’m tired of having to wear face coverings. I miss eating in restaurants. (Yes, my wife and I are still opting for carry-out.) On the other hand, I love working from home. And the “new normal” has taught me the importance of being a germaphobe!
But none of this is what I’m really getting at.
My first “new normal”
I have been a Jesus-follower my entire adult life. Ever since, as a young Jewish college student, kneeling down in a friend’s dorm room some 40+ years ago to give my life over to the Man Who I thought was only for “the Christians” (meaning the Gentiles) and not for me, my life has not been the same. From feeling directionless and unloved I have become a man with destiny under the covenant of He Who is love. Truly, it’s been as much of a romantic journey as is a marriage.
Come to think of it, my journey with Jesus is a marriage (Ephesians 5:32). I’ve given my life to Him, and He in turn has given all of Himself to me (John 14:21). Quite a deal, isn’t it?!?!?
The “normal” that isn’t so normal
But like any marriage, He and I have experienced highs and lows. There have been many times — indeed, more than I care to remember — in which my love for Him has grown cold. Life has gotten comfortable, predictable, and…well, somewhat stale. I’ve become quite self-sufficient and self-dependent. Too many of my days are spent going through the motions of life as if He doesn’t really exist.
That may be what we consider “normal” life. But it’s not the destiny for the disciple of Jesus who has been raised up from spiritual death into eternal life. It isn’t evidence of the indwelling Spirit Who raised Him from the dead.
The REAL NORMAL I desire
What I want — what I need — is to embrace His normal. I want to be rid of the false notions I have of Him being boring and disinterested. I want to love on Him with the worship He deserves. I want to drink of His Spirit like never before.
And from that place, I want to love like never before. I want to be used by Him to pierce the world’s darkness. I want to be known as both a lover and a (spiritual) warrior.
The old normal of lukewarm-ness is nauseating. The normal is life-giving.
Which normal do you want?
