Dare to be different

Galatians 1:10 Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ

All of us are social cowards. We all have the need to belong. Conformity is one of our greatest pressures. Our desire to be accepted may cause us to abandon some of our values, principles, and spiritual conviction. Yet the people who have made an impact in our history are the odd ones. Our Bible heroes stood out from the crowd. We have Daniel who was not afraid and kept his faith amidst the trouble that he might run into for praying. Abraham trusted in God and left his good life in the city of Ur to go to the promised land. Little did Abraham know that he will be called the father of all nations.
There was no indication in the Bible that Jesus Christ was physically different from the people in his time. The life that Jesus lead was different. He was not afraid to tell people the truth about him and his father. He knew the outcome of his life here on earth. He easily could have backed out from his mission. While on earth, Jesus was also human. He has experienced the pain humans are experiencing. That is why Jesus understands us because he became human for us, to save us. How did Christ do it? Jesus' strength came from above. He was constantly in touch with his Father in heaven.
Whenever we are with friends, schoolmates, office mates, we have to choose whom to please. Will it be God or men?
If we earnestly want to please God, let us always be in constant communication with God. We cannot be different if we do not have the strength to stand up to our convictions. Being different for God gives us fulfillment. Let us dare to be different.