"I don't care what you believe...just believe in it."
That’s a line from one of my favourite movies, Serenity. It’s especially important to me because I think it’s one of the most influential statements made in this decade’s movies.
I think my generation really isn’t into long-term commitment. People will saddle up alongside something for as long as it suits them, but once it stops being cool, they ditch it. Let me give you an example. Let’s say Bob is a runner. He wears the short shorts, he exercises, and he runs often. We know he’s a runner because he’s committed. Running is his passion. There’s no denying that. But what if he didn’t run as much? What if Bob took a run maybe once a month? Sure, he still wore the short shorts, but he doesn’t exercise any more. He doesn’t eat the right foods. Sure, he says he’s a runner. But is he? No. He’s not.
Let’s say Sally is a self-proclaimed ‘A’ student. How do we know that she is? Because she studies every day. She’s always carrying a book around and reading it. She goes in for extra help. We can see her commitment. But if she doesn’t study, is she an ‘A’ student? No. She’s a fake. If she doesn’t have the grades, she doesn’t get the title.
I can walk around calling myself a vegetarian all day, but if I eat meat even once, I’m not. I can post a Facebook status declaring that I support gay marriage, but if I don’t do something about it, then I don’t support anything. That’s the problem with people these days. They like to put fancy titles on themselves to make themselves feel better. Rights activist. Pacifist. Atheist. Vegetarian. Christian.
Let me ask you something. If you call yourself a vegetarian, what do you have to back yourself up? Because if you can’t say that you don’t eat meat, then you don’t deserve to walk around with a vegetarian label on your chest. If you call yourself an atheist, how do you prove that? You don’t just decide to not believe in something. You must have done some kind of deductive reasoning to defend your point of view. If you don’t have a reason for your opinion, you don’t have an opinion. If you call yourself a Christian, do you pursue God with every fibre of your being? Do you try above everything else to do what God wants you to do? Cause if you don’t, you really ought to examine yourself and see if you’re just falsely advertising.
If you believe in God, even if only a little bit, shouldn’t you actively be seeking to find out more about him? Shouldn’t you be pursuing him, reading his book, and trying to figure out his will? I mean, if there is a God, then shouldn’t he be the biggest aspect of your life? If you call yourself a Christian, that’s essentially saying that God is your top priority. If he’s not, then rip the Christian label off of your chest and stop making Jesus followers look bad.
That goes for any belief. If you claim to have something as your top priority, then for Pete’s sake, make it. If you believe that a cause is worth following, do something about it. If you’re not doing something about it, you don’t get the title. If you want to be a football player, then play football. Don’t play football, and you don’t get to be a football player. If you want to call yourself a good person, then do good things and actively pursue wisdom so you can know the difference between right and wrong. If you’re not looking for light, you’re drowning in dark.
Pursue your passion, or throw your passion in the toilet and stop dragging it around like a fool. You don’t have to see things my way, but at least stand by the way you think is best and hold fast to it. If you have an opinion, support it. If you can’t support it, maybe you should re-evaluate your opinion.
I don’t care what you believe...just believe in it.
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