Independence

Something in-depth I was thinking about one day and decided to write about.

Independent means different, distinctive, unique, and self-confident. It does not require solitude, though. An independent disciple is still part of a community, but it means you don't need to rely on other to decide what God wants you to do. It means others who vegemently disagree with you don't intimidate you. Independent disciples are not shaken by disagreements or differing opinions.

Independent people recognize that many times in life we have to go a different way than others. Different doesn't mean right, it just means different. Often two people can go separate ways and both be "right." Independence is not about being right; it's about going where God wants you to go. Barnabas and Paul strongly disagreed but they both followed God, so they just went different directions. Independence is the active part of our uniqueness. Someone said it this way: "A disciple is independently dependent on God."

In our everyday lives, we're forced to make decisions that we have always had made for us in the past when we were younger. We have a choice as to whether or not to go to class, to succeed, to drink, to have sex, to break rules, and especially to go forth with what God wants us to do, even though it may not always be clear every single day. Think about what separates you from you friends, your roommate, even your significant other. Just because you don't have everything in common with someone else does not make what you do wrong; it's just a different path, one that allows you to be yourself, to be independent.

Being a Christian doesn't make life easier. In fact, it makes it harder. God has pointed us in some strange directions before. Think about a time he pointed you in a strange direction... how did that change who you are today? Listen to your heart and trust that with the choices you make, you are allowing independence in your life, but also allowing yourself to be dependent on God to take these directions you follow and lead you to a better life.

Independent does not mean being wrong or right. Think of it like this, if you have independence without dependence, it's like cooking a giant Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings and then eating it alone...

Acts 25:36-40 says: "Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, "Let us go back and visit the brothers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing." Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took mark and sailed for Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord."

May you see the same God that is in you and in the one you most disagree with.