The Fringes

Have you ever felt as if your heart was drawing you out to the fringes of your life? Have you ever felt as if you were suppressing your hopes, dreams and passions because the path of conformity is so much easier than the path of the extraordinary? We all know or at least know of extraordinary people who refuse to compromise or conform their principles or their dreams to cultural boundaries. These passionate pioneers are driven by some intangible force within their souls that pushes them to dream big and defy the odds. These pioneers consider complacency the enemy of this life so they relentlessly pursue purposeful living.

Check out this picture of John Harmon. My sister-in-law's wedding ceremony by the sea had concluded only moments before he hit the waves in his little ring-bearer tux. He could barely wait out the ceremony. The allure of the waves on the fringe of the Atlantic Ocean were overwhelming to his little heart. To him, it made perfect sense to dance in the waves and his formal attire was no obstacle. It would have been silly for the rest of us, sensible as we are, to join him. Right? I mean it's foolish and just not socially acceptable. Hmmm. Maybe swimming in formal attire is a bit radical for us but I believe that each one of us are called to live on the fringes of life in some way. Unique passions well up within our souls throughout life and complacency (sometimes disguised as sensibility) assaults them.

Jesus came to grant us life to the fullest (John 10:10, Colossians 2:10). A life committed to following Jesus is not about conformity, it's about passionate living. Jesus spent his life on earth on the fringes of culture challenging religious leaders with truth and reflecting his Father's love through character. The bible tells us of a pivotal interaction between Jesus and Peter where Jesus teaches Peter about walking by BIG FAITH. Jesus literally walks on water and Peter musters the courage to follow him. As the wind and waves picked up, Peter took his eyes off Jesus and started to sink. Jesus reached out for him and caught him then challenged him to live by BIG FAITH (Matthew 14:25-32) Jesus still calls us to follow him with BIG FAITH out to the fringes of life to places where we are meant to live life to the fullest and glorify God.