I grew up cutting my teeth on church pews. Maybe not everyone’s typical beginning but needless to say I have grown up with “church people”. I know all the cliches: ” love the sinner not the sin” “stand out, be different” and many more just like it. But in the years of my faith I have learned that living a life connected to Jesus is so much more than staying in a Christian bubble. People view Christianity as crazy or pushy – watch most TV shows and you can see that. On the other end oft he spectrum, It’s so easy for one to get wrapped up in church or our Christian groups of friends that one never sees the world outside.

I have been working as a preschool teacher for the past 5 months. Recently a little girl came to me crying. When I listened to her plight, it seemed simple enough — one of the little boys would not let her play football because she was a girl. This situation was handled and we moved forward. A few days later I was talking to a coworker about church. Her statement reminded me so much of the preschooler’s situation. She said. ” Why would I go to church? It’s a place I don’t belong — a world I don’t know nor would feel welcome to.”

Jesus went from place to place meeting people. Never once did he say “I can just show you who I am if you come to the temple with me.” 

Jesus went from place to place meeting people. Sometimes they were with the worst kind of people. Never once did he say “I can just show you who I am if you come to the temple with me.” Jesus was always different and showed that wherever he was. God places us where we are for a reason. We should be followers of His wherever we are. That is the only way for us to be a light. It’s about breaking the bubble and being the difference in a world where people expect you to be crazy or a cliche. We’re not here to condemn. We are here to show love and grace in life, right where people are, showing the truth of Jesus in how we live.