Being Different

To be different, I have to do differently. 

It's my desire to be different from the world. I want them to wonder why I'm different (and I don't mean weird just to be weird either). If I am absorbing and living by the Bible I will be different. My attitude will be different. Our marriage will be different. My child-rearing will be different. Our home will be different. You get the idea. It works the other way as well. There are so many ideas that the world offers that are just different to me. 

Here's the problem. I have to actually do things differently to be different. I have to have a different attitude. I have to live by the Bible. In almost all areas I have to do everything differently than the majority of the world does things. 

-I should love and and submit to my husband instead of talking bad about him or treating him like one of the children. 
-I should teach and train my children instead of sitting them in front of the tv or fitting them into my life when it's convenient. (And yes, we do watch some tv.) 
-I should be gracious, not sarcastic or crude. 
-I should be modest and ladylike instead of all the alternatives that are there. 

Here's the bigger problem. I don't like to be different. I don't want to stand out  in what appears weird to others. I don't want people to look at me funny and say, "What's with her?" It's uncomfortable to do things differently because people definitely ask about it. I do believe that's the point however. The Bible tells us to have an answer (1 Pet. 3:15) so I need to think of ways to answer these (often rude) questions graciously in a way that reflects Christ. 

photo courtesy of artur84/freedigitalphotos.net

So what's the solution? I fix my eyes on Christ. I seek to win Christ. I press toward the mark. I forget everything else- often by consciously putting those thoughts aside-and look unto Jesus. (Phil. 3, Heb. 12:2) 

Being different means I don't bow to peer pressure and conform to the world. It means I don't worry about what someone else is doing. It means I don't wonder about what someone else thinks of me. It means I measure my life and how I "do" things by the Bible instead of what's socially acceptable. 

Keep those eyes on Christ! 

And how do you answer questions about your "differences" graciously?