Misfit Meeting

- Misfit: a person who is not suited or unable to adjust to the circumstances of his or her particular situation.

- "Reasonable people adapt themselves to the world. Unreasonable people attempt to adapt the world to themselves. All progress, therefore, depends on unreasonable people." -George Bernard Shaw

Last night was our first, official misftit meeting, which was simply a heart-felt chat over a few beers with a group of fiery friends. Perhaps one of the most salient things that brings us together is a shared feeling of somehow being on the outside, a feeling of not quite fitting into the mold. The individuals who make up the misfits live their passions, speak their hearts, don't hold back, and grab life by the horns. We have also all been rocked by witnessing extreme poverty, blatant injustice, and systemic discrimination in ways that will forever shape us. It was after these life-altering experiences that we realized the need for an outlet and assembled ourselves in order to garner support and encouragement, and spur each other to action.

When my mom read my new blog for the first time, she said, "I like your blog, honey, but you're not really a misfit". Part of this was her undying belief that her daughter could never be anything less than perfect, but it was also a statement embedded with a misunderstanding about the word "misfit". In reality, if we are truly living as Christians, aren't we all misfits? Shouldn't we, as Christ followers, be unable to adjust ourselves to these particular, live-the-American-dream-while-turning-a-blind-eye-to-the-world circumstances in which we live? I am not suited to punch a clock merely for the sake of a decent pension plan, I am not suited to buy nice cars so that my neighbors will notice, I am not suited to purchase houses in neighborhoods that are removed from the reality of poverty, I am not suited to ignore the suffering of those in my world for the benefit of my own comfort. We are called to be in the world, but not of the world. Jesus turned over vendors' tables, had no place to rest his head, hung out with the lowest, most impoverished, and messed up people imaginable. Jesus is the prototype misfit. Aren't we called to do the same?

Last night was the first of many intentional misfit meetings to come where we will share deeply and hold each other accountable to these somewhat lofty ideals. These misfits give me great hope in the ability to live a completely unreasonable, radical vision.