Different...

I just finished watching American Idol, go David Archuleta!, and it is down to the final four contestants. The thing I like about this season of Idol is that all of them are very different. One is a rocker, another is R&B, another folk, and another pop. It's great to see such a blended group of talented people all coming from different genres. Millions of people vote on their favorite Idol every week and their are millions of crazy girls in love with David Archuleta. But if he was the guy that sat next to them in class, would they love him as much? Would they scream for his attention everyday?

Growing up in middle school and high school DIFFERENT was bad. The "different" people didn't get to hang out in the "cool" and popular crowd. They didn't get to sit at the "right" lunch table. They didn't have a lot of friends. They didn't wear all the right clothes. They usually were mistreated and out casted just because they weren't like everyone else. The sad thing is that things haven't changed much since I was in school 10 years ago. What a shame!

Now, just to clarify, I wasn't very different growing up. Looking back I wish I were. I tried to blend in and be one of the crowd. I was a follower and not a leader, and I did it all for the sake of popularity. I now know I was created to be different. Paul tells us in I Corinthians that God has given us all a unique gifting and we all play a different and specific role in life.

You're different, God made you that way. Show it off!