As much as I enjoy being in Chennai, rarely does anything seem brand new. Dust quickly takes new construction projects to a state of well kept but used. Brightly painted temples have a redecorated feel to them, always looking older than the old age they actually are. Cars are rarely spotless. The list goes on.
As I came back to the hotel in Chennai I found myself watching the unusual. Two pristine Mercedes, new, white, and sparkling! The drivers were dressed in smart, perfectly tailored black suits with crisp, spotless white shirts. The occupants were just leaving the hotel. Everyone but one got into the car parked slightly ahead on the left. This would have made the scene unusual but not completely out of the ordinary.
I realized there was an exceptional person organizing the order that the doors was opened and for whom. She was a different to everyone else as the cars and driver! There was no single item I could point to that made her stand out. She wore a conservative yet stunning dress in a perfect medium blue. A perfect fit to my imagination of what couture should be in practice. Her demeanor was controlled yet amazingly professional, quick, and practiced. Her hair and make-up looked as if she had just left the hands of a world-class artist.
In a flash she was there and then they were pulling out, her alone in the lead car with the crowd trailing as if by command.
What had I seen? I am not sure. What I know is that this is a perfect example of what it means to stand out in a crowd. It was a stark example of something different for all the right reasons.
As I replay the images in my mind, I am reminded of a comment made regarding God’s treatment to another. “You lifted him high and bright as a cumulus cloud, then dressed him in rainbow colors.” (Psalm 21.5) Something that stands out, inspiring examples of what is possible.
I saw something exceptional. Perhaps we could be exceptions.
