Normal

By Mary Karner

Did you know that according to the New York Times the average American is bombarded with 5,000 advertising images a day? Many of these images are included in the average 2.6 hours an American spends watching television every day. I think most of my 5,000 images come from that issue of People magazine I buy every month added with that unfortunate addiction of mine to “E! True Hollywood Story.”

Thus, like most of us, I’ve seen those headlines about Lindsey Lohan’s short-lived stints in rehab, Miley Cyrus’ racy pictures in Vanity Fair, the always dramatic Britney Spears, not to mention all of Brad and Angelina’s new children.

It’s only natural for us to start believing that these images we read about, hear about, and watch are 100 percent normal. After all, isn’t it called “reality” TV for a reason? Aren’t those cameras actually filming in that celebrity’s home? It has to be normal...right?

Personally, I hate the term normal. It has no concrete meaning. With the power of only two syllables, it defines a select, relative group of people and excludes a majority. It makes us think having a baby at age 16 like Jamie Lynn Spears is “normal.”

We come to believe it is “normal” for men to get away with beating women, all because Chris Brown got away with hitting Rihanna. It seems “normal” for most teens to engage in underage drinking since we see those crazy parties on TV all the time.

But as Christians, our definition of normal comes from the Holy, inspired Word of God rather than the highly publicized lives and behaviors of popular culture. John writes, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:15).

This is not to say that God is some strict Father-figure who wants to take away all our fun though. It’s completely the opposite! God wants us to enjoy the life He gave us, and He sets boundaries for us, not as a punishment, but for our own protection and good.

So what does a normal, Lutheran teen look like? We know how to have fun within the rules. We laugh loudly. We respect our parents and elders. We go to youth group. We sing our guts out during our favorite hymns. We go to Higher Things conferences. We respect ourselves and our bodies. We help our neighbors. We rejoice in our risen Lord and Savior. And we most definitely “are not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16).

However, it is also normal for us to make mistakes, to get caught up in the earthly thrills of life and the desires of the flesh, and to be nothing but poor, miserable sinners. Even the apostle Paul spoke of himself, “I do not understand my own actions...For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing” (Romans 7:15, 19). Yet, we repent. We remember and cling to our Baptisms. We partake of the very body and blood of Jesus and receive forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation through it. And we live everyday with the confidence that “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

We have an awesome gift of already knowing our identity in Christ, instead of trying to find ourselves in a pop culture masquerading as “normal.” Plus, we have the whole body of Christ as our own personal support system and loving community. So dare to be who you are as a Lutheran because you can rest assured that you are an heir to the kingdom of Heaven and perfectly normal in God’s eyes, all thanks to the eternal life Christ won for you on the cross. Alleluia!

Mary Karner is a freshman at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. E-mail her at mekarner@bsugmail.com.