Saying that we need to be living in Christ is a religious way to talk about discovering and realizing our individual and corporate potential. Most of us are pretty familiar with the religious language, but to put it in plain English, living in Christ has a lot to do with living honestly as ourselves and with doing with integrity what lies before us to do in our lives. Living in Christ is not an excuse to avoid living in our own skin. It does not mean living in a dependent relationship with God, Jesus, or the church. As I understand how Jesus understood God, faith is supposed to free and empower us. The Bible says, “Christ has made us free.” Living in Christ means to be free indeed!

The flip side of freedom is responsibility. They always come together like two sides of the same coin. We are free to live. We are responsible for our living. This is true if our living involves the challenges of poverty, illness, and losses of every kind. This is also true if our living includes the best of everything: easy, comfort, safety, and good fortune. This second list is filled with some great blessings, but those very blessings can make it really hard to step out and take risks.

Typically, the church has taught us to stay inside the lines when we color our lives. In fact, the church has often told us just how we’re supposed to draw the lines! An honest reading of Jesus in the Gospels, however, seems to say something different. The attitude we need to have to follow Jesus is a willingness to color outside the lines. What will it mean for you to color outside the lines in your life? It might mean rethinking how you earn a living or how you invest some of your free time. It might mean making different choices in how you see yourself or making challenging choices in favor of your own growth.

Stepping out in life does require some faith. Thankfully, for most of us, we do not need enough faith to undertake the entire mission, challenge, or life change all at once. All we need is the courage to take a first step. Then, if it seems to be right, we will need faith and courage enough for the next step – and so on.

What is true for us as individuals is also true for us in relation to our families, our churches, and even all of humanity. Beneficial change begins when we think outside the boxes that have begun to imprison us. New life begins as we start to color outside the lines that have constrained our growth. It takes just a little courage to set aside what have become crutches and walk toward Jesus on shaky legs that are just beginning to discover their real strength. Remember that the future always lies ahead of us. May God continue to guide and bless you.

Thanks for blessing me on the journey.

--Jack Price

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