I am defined by the girl I love, the Savior I love, and the God who loves me. I am defined by intimate community and unconditional affection, and the hope and mercy vested in such a love. I will not be-refuse to be!-defined by either my failures or successes, my material gains or losses, and the empire identified on my passport. Do not be defined by Wall Street, Times Square, or the White House; Fox News or CNN; MTV or ESPN. Do not be defined by “the nationwide corporate lie that you are safe inside your apathy.” There’s nothing wrong with having influences – indeed, it’s impossible not to have them. But an “influence” is not a defining characteristic, for it is still not YOU. So do not even let yourself be defined by your favorite Christian author, favorite Christian speaker/podcast, favorite Christian musician, or any other outside influence who is not named King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
We are defined by who (or, sadly, what) we love and who loves us.
We do not even do the defining ourselves; others define us. Mahatma Gandhi, when asked if he was a Christian, simply replied, “Ask the poor.” (yep, I had to pull that knife out of my heart too)
If the Church could be personified, I hope at it’s funeral one could say of it, “She passionately desired her Lover, and sought out redemption for those who needed her radical love.” I fear, though, that we may end up saying, “She sure enjoyed the finer things of life, and was a really nice person.”
We write our eulogy with our lives.
