Note: The idea for this blog came from a devotional entitled Jesus, Day by Day by Sharon Kaselonis (8-15-25)

All of my youth I tried to fit in. I wanted to play with the other neighborhood kids outside, ride bikes, learn how to ride a horse and run chasing each other through our yards. Unfortunately, since I was born with asthma, I was not allowed to go outside except for short spans of time in which I was to sit quietly and play jacks on the porch with friends willing to sit with me. So, I just never fit in and felt like one of the toys from a Christmas movie who live on the “island of misfit toys.”

I think the time during my youth when I always felt different is what led me to seek and search for something more in life. After college, I came to the saving knowledge of Jesus and found that finally I fit in. I was part of the body of Christ, His church, one of His people.

But then, someone told me I was supposed to be separate from the world. What?!? I had spent all of my teen years feeling separated from friends and fun, and now I have to step back from the world that I was just discovering. It has taken a lot of Bible study and patience on God’s part to show me that I am “divinely different” and that’s exactly what makes me acceptable to God and a part of a big family who also love the Lord. So, I am different in a good way, a way that keeps me safe from the temptations of the world (provided I choose to walk away) and with a whole future in eternity to look forward to. Through my relationship with Christ, I have found that being different isn’t always a bad thing. Rather, it is life-affirming and one of the best things that ever happened to me!

Look at those adjectives! Chosen, special and wonderful. These descriptive words help me to continue to walk in the light because I want to be all of these things for my Father.

Now, look at the nouns in this passage: righteousness, holiness and redemption. Jesus is all of these inside of us because of His sacrifice. It is Christ who makes the difference in my life.

On the outside, I am the same person. I still have the same physical body, but inside, I am brand, spanking new. I am a new creation because I am in Christ. I am indeed divinely different! I pray that you are, too!