Blend in or Stand Out?

When these March daffodils sprouted from the bulbs set out last fall, I got excited. First, because my gardening efforts actually worked. And second, because the lone, white one stood out. It was different and commanded attention.

 Am I one of the yellow flowers or the lone, white one? I asked myself.

Too often, I’m content to blend in with the crowd. I show up for the meeting, but I’m reluctant to take a leadership role. I prefer to listen, to do my part, to stay under the radar.

 Isn’t that what the Bible stresses: not to seek attention. To go to our inner room, close the door and pray to our Father in secret (Matthew 6:6). To consider others more important than ourselves (Philippians 2:3) and to keep in mind the Word’s promises that the exalted with be humbled and the humbled exalted (Matthew 23:12).

Could I be using this line of thinking as a cop-out? Probably.

Because we also have Scripture that speaks of boldness. God didn’t give us a spirit of fear, or timidity, but one of power, love, and discipline (1 Timothy 1:7). As believers we are called to live boldly by faith. The biblical meaning of bold means to act with courage, especially as one who speaks up for what is right, or the boldness of someone who is confident that what God says is right. Bold, boldly, and boldness are used throughout the book of Acts to describe Paul’s proclamation of the Gospel (Acts 4:31; 13:46; Acts 14:3; 18:26; 19:8; 28:31).

So, how do we reconcile the two—humility and grace? We examine our motives. As long as our aims are pure and for God’s glory, it’s best to stand out. We don’t want to blend in with the crowd in the way we live. We want our lives to be a flashing arrow, pointing others toward Christ.

As a Christian, do we want to blend in, that is “conform to the surrounding environment or group, making oneself less noticeable?”* Or do we want to stand out, “be distinctive or prominent, attracting attention due to unique qualities or characteristics.”*

*Definitions: OpenAI