I like living on the edge. Riding a micro-scooter down the street the wrong way in New York during rush hour is awesome. Pushing the edge on a mountain bike is fun! Listening to the sound of a small block Chevy thumping its way through a small English village is a joy. There is a thrill; an embedded belief that the possibility exists that something new, exciting, and unique will happen if I travel in this space. Granted my exploring is not the typical worldly pursuit of hedonistic pleasure; rather I seek to live, work, be in relationship, and play in ways that are upfront, personal, untraditional, and aggressive. Rules often get in the way.
I find that people who do not really live in the real world often make the rules of work and life. People in ivory towers decide how we should wait in lines or queues for tickets and services. People in distant places explain the nuances of dress and decorum. Certain speed limits make no sense (fast and slow)! Success appears to come from reshaping and forming the rules beyond the letter of the law and only distantly related to the spirit.
The willingness to challenge the status quo is at times good. New things are discovered, the creative process of art realized, and life is always new and unpredictable. People who lead often enjoy this process, if not actively participating in it.
The dilemma lies in the things that are already perfect or unchangeable. God is perfect, his rules unchangeable. The rules of physics constant and life continues. Trying to live on the edge with God is good if one understands where the edge is! “After all these years of refusing to really deal with God on his terms, insisting instead on making [my] their own deals, [I] they have nothing to show for it.” (Romans 10.3)
God’s gift to you and I is a fact that cannot be changed or challenged. Living on the edge is a possibility – God invites us to take on living way beyond my comfort zone!
