Dare to be Different

I remember my last Christmas with my family before I got married and moved out of state. Actually, I should say I remember the gifts from that Christmas. I remember the gifts just as clearly as when I received a keyboard with a built in DJ kit when I was 7, but I digress. What did I receive? I got a Selah CD with songs from their time living in Africa as missionaries. I got a small silver bell so that every time I heard its ring, I would remember my family. I got a cool paisley shirt, a Hebrew-Greek study Bible and a silver necklace with a charm that read Dare to be Different. Gifts are not my love language, but looking back, these gifts played a crucial part of my life that would bring me to where I am now. Looking back, I know that my parents were giving me tools to follow Jesus on my own as they released me into adulthood. 

Much of the symbolism from these gifts still follow me today, but not as much as the Dare to be Different necklace. Growing up, I always knew that God set me apart on a different path. Growing up, I prided myself as being different and following a different path than the cool kids.  I never wanted to stay in my hometown. I wanted to study music in college. These events may seem trivial, but they are all part of my journey leading me here. Even today, I am still shocked at how our lives went from musicians to much different. But again, God has a different plan for me and my family. 

Now that I'm living this life in Southeast Asia, I often compare myself to other expats living here. Maybe I started comparing because I am already so different from most people around me that I wanted to blend in with those most like me. The expats are learning the language fast, they're making friendships fast, they're invited to coffee and picnics and weddings with local people. We have been here a year and we have only recently been invited to our neighbor's funeral. However, God has actually revealed a lot through this funeral. He has reminded me that he has a different plan for me. He has given me the desire to live differently than the other expats around me. He has made me, just like he has made you, differently for his purpose and plan. So, even the young Jaime who was proud to be eccentric and unique fell into the comparison trap. Maybe, just maybe, (ok, I'm pretty confident this is what he was doing) God had given me these desires to be different early on because he was preparing me for this time. 

It takes courage and confidence to swim against the current, but that's what Jesus did: he came to earth and lived differently. He was different than the unbelievers he witnessed to. He was different than the believers around him.  I want to be different if it means being more like Jesus. Instead of comparing, I'm going to dare to be different.