Hidden Cost or Hidden Treasure?

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world , but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:2 (NIV)

From the time that I became a Christian and started studying God's Word I have wrestled with my understanding of Romans 12 and the implications it has for my life, especially the second verse. Christians are faced with many difficult tasks, but one of the most difficult is taking teachings given to people of a 1st Century Eastern culture and attempting to reconcile them with the 21st Century Western culture we live in today. Most of the time, when we go through this process, we unknowingly and unintentionally dismiss core Biblical teachings when they contradict or oppose the culture we live in. In fact, we allow our culture and society's standards to influence our interpretation of Scripture more than we may realize.

I don't think it's an understatement to say that our society has turned just about as far as it can away from God's intended design for life. As Christians, we are privileged to be able to live a different life; one of peace and true happiness that comes only from Christ. We are privileged, but it doesn't stop there. We have a duty, a responsibility, to live a life that shows who we belong to; the world or God. We just cannot sit by any longer and allow our culture to impact the way we live as Christians.

I don't enjoy being different just for the sake of being different, because I don't like the unnecessary attention. However, sometimes you just have to take a stand for the things that matter most. At the end of many days I often think about what other people saw in me that day. I wonder if I blended in or if there was at least one person who stopped for a moment to think about what's different in me. There's nothing especially great about me and that's not where I'm going, but in each and every Christian lives the very Spirit of God.

Sure, you could say there are some "hidden costs" involved in living a Christian life the way God intended, but they pale in comparison to the indescribable treasures we find when we disregard the worldly things and fully submit to God's desires for us. I'll ask you to reflect on that same question I often think about. Through the way you live your life, would anyone who came into contact with you today have been able to tell you are a Christian?