Are You Extraordinary?
Are You Extraordinary?
By Mike Guindon
A few years ago God revealed to me the importance of prayer, specifically With, For, and Over my wife. God told me to do that especially in the middle of conflict, was Extraordinary. It made me begin to wonder how extraordinary it really was. So Jill and I began to dig into the prayer lives of people we mentored and during classes we facilitated and seminars we put on. What we found was that it was rare, it was uncommon, it was truly Extraordinary.
Recently God has put that word “Extraordinary” on my mind again. This time having to do with being a Christian, one who seeks the narrow road Jesus speaks of. To be a follower of Jesus Christ, one who truly wants to love Him more than anything else, to care more about my sin than my suffering, is Extraordinary.
According to Webster the definition of Extraordinary is “going beyond what is usual, regular, or customary. It is being exceptional to a very marked extent. It is being exceptional in character.” But it also states that it is “being employed for or sent on a special function or service “(i.e. ambassador extraordinary).
As I look at the definition it seems to me that it defines a true Christian. Then I ask the question, would anyone that knows me say that I was Extraordinary? They would say I am a Christian hopefully, but would they say I was Extraordinary? My fear is that they wouldn’t.
I do know that I cannot be Extraordinary apart from Jesus. He was and is Extraordinary, I can’t duplicate His greatness but I can try. Isn’t that what the sanctification process is all about? To be like Jesus is Extraordinary!
To find that narrow path I have to be Extraordinary. Matthew 7:13-14, Luke 13:23-25, and Isaiah 35:8 all tell us the road is narrow and few find it. I have come to realize that you have to be Extraordinary to find it. We cannot be lukewarm Christians, doing our duty by attending church, serving within the church, and trying to be nice. We must be exceptional, uncommon, remarkable lovers of Jesus Christ! What does that look like?
Marriage gives us the greatest opportunity to be Extraordinary, to become more Holy. We have the chance each and every day to love our spouse the way Jesus loves, sacrificially. We come face to face daily with our sin of self-centeredness and have to make the decision to do what comes most natural or to put our spouse’s wants and needs above our own.
I feel like I yearn to love Jesus and loves others, but do I really? Do I crave the narrow road enough to live as a servant? Do I truly love my wife the way Christ loves the church? Do I want to be Extraordinary? The answer is YES, but I do not have the strength or ability apart from Jesus. May I never forget that, but rather continue to strive to be Extraordinary. What about you?