In this world...not of it

Christians hear & say that often but is it really easy to be in this world & not of it? For me, it varies. Sometimes it seems effortless & other times it feels like I'm failing miserably at it. The following devotion by Dr. David Jeremiah speaks to this. I hope it blesses you.

Uncomfortable with the Culture

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Romans 12:2

Recommended Reading
1 Peter 1:13-16


It's happened more than once—missionaries leave the United States and, in time, become more comfortable in a foreign land than in their native country. They give various reasons: "It's quieter," "less materialism," "less peer pressure on our children," "the people are more receptive to the Gospel." When they return to America to visit, they talk about "returning home" in a new way—they've exchanged their old home for a new one.

That's what it means to be a citizen of the kingdom of God. Paul says our "citizenship is in heaven," not in this world (Philippians 3:20). It's why, over time, Christians begin to feel more and more out of place with the cultures of this world; why they speak of God's eternal kingdom as "going home." When we exchange our earthly home for our kingdom home is up to God. In the interim, our job is to so walk in the Spirit that we aren't "conformed to this world"; that we aren't squeezed into the world's mold, as Bible translator J. B. Phillips put it. When you leave home today, let it remind you of where your true home is—in Christ Jesus, now and for eternity.

"If you stand on the Word you do not stand with the world." Vance Havner