You are made to stand out, not fit in

Are you an eagle or a chicken christian?

I’m sure your looking at this question and thinking, ‘Why would I want to be a Chicken?’ Of course, no one wants to be a Chicken or even labelled as one. I once heard of this analogy about Eagle and Chicken Christians which perfectly depicts the difference between Christians who stand out and those who fit in with the majority.

Unfortunately, many Christians settle as Chickens without even knowing it, and fit in rather than standing out as we were destined for. But today, I want to remind you that you were not created to fit in, but you have been called to stand out.

Let us look at this analogy in some more detail. An Eaglet was placed into a Chicken barn. The Eaglet was raised amongst the Chickens, ate with the Chickens, acted like the Chickens and probably even started to think like them. The Eaglet did not know how to live for the purpose he was created; he didn’t even know how to fly as all he knew was how to be a Chicken, confined to one area.

One day, the Eaglet saw an Eagle flying high up in the air, admiring the power and height the Eagle was able to reach, wishing he could do the same. Now there are many different versions of this analogy but the majority end with the Eaglet living the rest of his life, dying believing he was a Chicken. Pretty sad right? How does this apply to us as Christians you may ask? Quite sadly, many Christians live their life as this Eaglet, who instead of standing out as an Eagle amongst the Chickens, lived his whole life fitting in with the majority.

So how can we stand out as christians?

Romans 12:2 tells us ‘Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.

As Christians, we were called to live a purposeful life. We were created for a purpose, and to stand out we must fulfil our individual purpose on this earth. We cannot live our whole lives wishing to be like those we see soaring high, but you must understand that you are also able to soar high!
(Isaiah 40:31 ‘those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary’).[pullquote]those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary[/pullquote]

Standing out is definitely not an easy thing to do, especially in the society which we live in where doing anything contrary to the norm is considered weird or even worse, boring. This has led some to act like the majority in order to fit in; for others it has caused the rise to fear of being criticized for being different, and for some it has led them to live their whole life as someone else.

Imagine living your whole life like everyone but yourself, when you could stand out in a positive way, just by being YOU. I myself have been in positions where I have compromised standing out because I didn’t want to be seen as doing ‘too much’, but God had to teach me to love myself and to embrace my differences no matter the opinions of others.

Now I want you to ask yourself, what are you standing out for? If you decide that you want to stand out and come out of that non-befitting life of ‘fitting in’, then you must stand out for something. As Christians we are called to stand out as children of God and are told that we should not conform to the world. This is through our mindset, our actions and our whole lifestyle.

This means that we should not conform to the world’s standards, we should not settle for less than we were created for, but should live to fulfil the purpose of God in our lives.

Stand out for the right reasons.

Matthew 5:15-16 – You are the light of the world… Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Not fitting in is a struggle in itself, but standing out is a struggle on its own level. It is easy for us to say that we are not going to live the life of others, that we are going to be ourselves etc… But, although you may not be fitting in by conforming, for example, at your workplace you may not be found in the pub every Friday with the rest of your work colleagues, but are you truly standing out? When people see you, do they see you as the unique person that God created you to be?

Let us look at things from another perspective. Let’s say that you have come to the conclusion that you are standing out. Now I ask, are you standing out for the right reasons?

Some people like to stand out for the wrong reasons, maybe to prove a point or to try and put others down by elevating themselves above others. It may even be a way to seek attention or to be noticed amongst a specific group of people. But, this is not the right way to view standing out and is definitely not the type of standing out that I am encouraging.

What are your motives for standing out? Is it to bring Glory to God or to glorify yourself? I say this because I have also been in positions where I have stood out, but for the wrong reasons. I stood out because I wanted to be popular, I wanted people to see me rather than the God in me. But I had to learn that this was the wrong way to stand out.

Jesus told us that we are the light of the world and that our lights are to shine before men so that the glory is returned to God. So, again I ask you, Are you standing out for the right reasons?

Ways that we can stand out for the right reasons

• Know who you are in Christ and live according to God’s standard and not the worlds
• Be a role model to those around you
• Be bold, courageous and confident through the Lord
• Identify you God-given purpose and live to fulfil it
• Choose to be yourself, and not anyone else (Be a leader and not a follower)
• Choose to do the right thing even if it means you are mocked for it

In whatever position we find ourselves, whether in the workplace, in our churches or amongst our family and peers, let us make a decision today to stand out for Christ. Remember we are in this world but we are not of this world. You are unique and ‘standing out’ must be your lifestyle!

So next time you find yourself trying to fit in, remember that ‘You’re Made to Stand Out. Not Fit in’.

God bless you.