Roots

If there is one thing I have always envied its the people who know where they are from. For example, some people are born and bred country life folk...they can farm and care for animals, they get rejuvenated from the outdoors, they wouldn't want life any other way.  Or on the opposite extreme there is the city folk, they LOVE their city.  They can get from this place to that place and know which places are the best.  They are street savvy and usually seem tough or edgy.  They can't see themselves ever leaving the city they love.  See I grew up in the middle and still live in the middle...suburbs...don't get me wrong lovely places.  But they lack the feel of either extreme.  Most kids don't feel tied to their suburb.  They don't have all the space of the country to free roam but also lack the character of the city.  We have all our standards, McDonalds, Walmart, Starbucks, chain grocery store... our parks all look alike only the playground is arranged differently.  So while its not bad, its also not the thing stories or songs are made of.  Suburbanites often move town to town with no feelings of nostalgia...but here is the catch....a suburbanite lifer like myself cannot go county or city without looking like a poser.  Why...because I did not live my life soaked in something that has roots....family farms have roots...small towns with multi generations have roots...cities have roots...but suburbs are more of a newer phenomenon in history.  They lack roots they are like the nomads of lifestyles.  The weird thing about them that I have found is they lack commitment. 

So as I have been reading my Bible, I saw a stark similarity with Spiritual walks.  We have those who live their faith out loud, there is no doubt they love their Jesus.  They have a history and roots with this King of Kings, they can't imagine a moment without Him.  Their are also the other extreme they don't believe or they don't care to find out what they Jesus is all about...but if we were to be honest most people including myself a lot of times park ourselves in the spiritual suburbs.  We have your standard church attendance, own a Bible, send our kids to church programs, but there is not a passion for anything.  Its comfortable, so comfortable that not only can we sometimes forget many times we actively forgo our faith.  Our roots are social not spiritual, therefore its easy to pick up from one church and move on to another if its not meeting our expectations.  Yet many church goers and even some who don't go would admit the same thing I said at the beginning envy those who are sold out...those who walk out in faith or the Word is always on their lips and they really live it out. Those who don't just tote the words of Jesus around, but live the life too.  We feel like a poser if we "act" like those people.  So we sit back and live in our suburb faith.

Its doesn't have to be this way though...it all starts in our head and in our feelings... The truth is, if I want to be a country girl or a city girl I need to stop doing the same old same old...I need to make a choice to pick up from where I am and move forward into something new...something uncomfortable...  Then I need to learn from as many people as I can..surround myself with those who are living it.  I need to step out in faith and buy a chicken or get on that subway...am I going to mess up, yep...am I going to get lost...yep...but the second time I won't and the more time I purposely invest in my new reality the faster I will acclimate.  When my family sees my passion they will too want to know what I am doing...here begins the roots....so if you are in the suburbs of faith (or life) and you want more...take a purposeful step out and start becoming the roots.