As a child, I was told to color inside the lines. This is where everyone does the same thing with the same colors. Further, the same colors were the “right” colors: The grass had to be green and the sky had to be blue– You get the idea. My teachers and kindergarten friends noticed when my crayons strayed or when I used colors that did not match reality. After all how many monkeys have you seen that are green, blue & brown like this powerful masterpiece from my then 5-year old son Ben?
“Then he went back in the meeting place where he found a man with a crippled hand. The Pharisees had their eyes on Jesus to see if he would heal him, hoping to catch him in a Sabbath infraction. He said to the man with the crippled hand, “Stand here where we can see you. Then he spoke to the people: “What kind of action suits the Sabbath best? Doing good or doing evil? Helping people or leaving them helpless?” No one said a word. He looked them in the eye, one after another, angry now, furious at their hard-nosed religion.” — Mark 3:1-5
The Pharisees were mad at Jesus for breaking their religious rules of the Sabbath. They saw the Sabbath as a set of “do’s & don’ts” and when someone broke them, they wanted to see people ‘taught lessons’ and punished. Then Jesus comes along to push back on this legalism. You see, Jesus wasn’t using the “right” colors, he wasn’t doing religion the way they did it, and he wasn’t staying within their control. Jesus pushed boundaries of their religion to get them to see beyond the rules and into the heart, grace and mercy of the command. Religious people make rules for God but God doesn’t need their help. Religion bleeds into legalism denying the work of Christ and the grace & mercy of God in our lives. Jesus was out to bring radical love by coloring outside the lines.
Figuratively, coloring outside the lines means thinking in unorthodox ways, behaving in unorthodox ways, and not being afraid of trying something new– Perhaps even healing on the Sabbath. In business, it’s using your innovative thoughts and ideas to create something extraordinary. How many times have you have you heard or caught yourself saying, “that’s not how it’s done,” “you’re doing it wrong,” or “that won’t work?”. It’s the picture that’s important and not the lines. Are you currently focused on the “office rules” and missing a great idea? Or perhaps not seeing the messy, hurting, and troubled in need today because your focus is in the wrong spot?
My hope for you is to unlearn this lesson from kindergarten: Let your crayons go wherever they want to go. Discard the pre-prepared illustrations you were given in life and make your own way drawing a life that matters and has purpose. Remember, you’re someone else’s miracle.
Question |
Share a time when you showed the courage to color outside the lines for God?