I’ve always thought that rebellious people were the bad guys. We were taught since we were children not to rebel in school, not to rebel at home, not to rebel against others. We were taught to follow the norm. We had rules we had to follow. We were told to be obedient to the world or else there would be consequences. This is true. There is no doubt that if we rebel against the norm or the social cues that there will be judgement.
But rebellion is fun, right? That’s why people do the things they do. It is fun to be a rule breaker and a radical. What if I told you if you are living for yourself and for the world you are just another ordinary person. You aren’t a rebel, you are following the norm. Because according to the dictionary:
Rebel (n):
A person who resists any authority, control, or tradition.
There was a time in my life when I thought I was a rebel. I was disobeying my parents because they were my authority. I was disobeying the law, drinking before I was 21. I was following the wrong crowd because they did everything I was told not to do. I did all this because being a rebel is exhilarating! Knowing that if I got caught there would be consequences, but taking that risk because it’s intoxicating. I was addicted to the feeling of resistance.
Little did I know that I wasn’t unique. I wasn’t resisting the norm. I WAS the norm. I wasn’t a rebel, I was an average teenager/young adult. Everyone I knew was drinking in high school and college. Everyone I knew was disobeying their parents and sneaking out late at night. I was doing it because everyone else was doing it. So how did this make me a rebel? I was doing everything the world told me to do. I was obeying the pleasures of the world. The world was my authority and I bowed down to it as if it held the future in my hands. I thought that the WORLD was all there was to live for. If you dive deeper into the definition of a rebel these are some of the best definitions that stood out to me:
Rebel (n):
An individual. Someone who stands out from the crowd. An inquisitive person who embraces a challenge. A leader who inspires others through bold and confident action. A passionate, adventurous and fearless character. Someone who makes a statement.
As I got to know Christ, He showed me a whole new perspective on the word rebel. He revealed a part of me that I have never seen before. This world is full of people who follow the same path, do the same things, act the same way. What if I was different? I don’t want to be a part of the people, I want to be an individual. I want to stand out from the crowd. I want to embrace challenges that I can’t even imagine. I want to inspire others through my actions. I want to be adventurous and fearless. I want to be passionate. I want to make a statement. I want to rebel against the world instead of rebel against God. Because being a rebel against God is too easy. It’s too normal. It’s too…boring.
When God calls me to step out of my comfort zone and be fearless, it is the most exhilarating feeling I have ever experienced. It’s like you are scared and excited and are facing the unknown all at the same time. You are creating this version of yourself that is so adventurous and passionate. Have you ever jumped on an airplane and flew to a different country not knowing what you are getting yourself into, just so you can look a starving child in the face and hug them so tight that they didn’t even know what love was until you stepped into their dirt mound of a home and hit them so hard with a Jesus they didn’t even know existed? Have you ever left the mundane of your job not knowing what your future holds or what your bank account holds just to live the life God has called you to live? Have you ever gone up to someone you have never met before in a place you have never been just to tell them how loved they are by a God who died to know them? If you have never stepped out of your comfort zone in Christ, if you have never been so fearful, yet so confident in the decisions God calls for your life, if you have never stood out from the crowd, then you have no idea what it is like to be rebellious.
Because this type of rebellion is INTOXICATING. It is bold. It is inspiring. And it is all because of God. I have never felt so alive in my life. I have never been so passionate and awakened. God calls us to be rebels. He calls us to be rebels against the world.
I’m so pumped to go on the World Race. I’m so hyped up about being fearless for my creator. I am ready to share this exhilaration with the world. I am ready to love the world. I am ready to be the light in the world.
Let’s be real, the norm…it’s boring. That’s why we are never satisfied. But God, oh man, He is real and He is ready to breathe His life into you. Join the rebellion.
