52 SUNDAYS: What If I'm The Only XYZ

This year we're challenging our members and regular attenders to attend a church service every week in 2014. You can read more about the 52 SUNDAYS challenge here. This article is part of a series of articles about 52 SUNDAYS.

What if I'm the only XYZ?

Opposites don’t attract. Being different is hard. Life isn't like Cheers, where everyone knows your name. And everyone is the same. We all know that sinking feeling of walking into a room were we feel like we don’t fit-in. It's no fun.

Different is better.

However, be encouraged. In the Bible, we find the church is diverse. So much so that it's counter-cultural. Every congregation was made up of slaves and free men. Rich and poor people. Singles and married. And like them, our common salvation unites us today, while our diversity demonstrates God’s ability to reconcile us to Himself and one another. We are different by design. 

Different is helpful.

This may seem contradictory at first, but our differences helps us grow in our faith. The church is called to mature Christians into Christians, not make them cookie cutter XYZs. And this only happens when the church is filled with all kinds of different people. For this reason, we view our diversity as a strength and blessing, not an obstacle to fitting in.

Different is the same.

The main thing that unites a church is not it differences, but it's common need for Jesus. Our share in Him creates a bond stronger than a season of life, or ethnicity, or economics, or even a theological perspective. We are brothers and sisters in Christ, no matter how different our lives may be. We are a family...and families are made up of different people in different season of life.

Different is welcome here.

Want to find a place where you're welcome "as is"? Come to church on Sunday. Don't stay home or go looking for another club. You won't find another place more capable of being one with each other while retaining the marks of our individuality. God is making for Himself a new people, from every tribe, tongue, and nation.