Living Counter Culturally

I’m Rev Jay Stuart Glover and you are listening to “ Faith Talk” 

The is a scripture that comes from Romans 12:2 that reads as: 

2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

As a matter of fact I might be bold enough to say that this scripture reminds me  of the original meaning and  use of the term “woke.”

 Unfortunately this term has now been taken out of the context of it’s original use and is now being applied to support other ideological arguments. 

In a world facing rapid political shifts, economic challenges, and the looming threat of war, the timeless scripture “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” from Romans 12:2 offers profound guidance . This verse invites people to wake up and resist being molded by worldly values and instead, be transformed through a renewed mind, aligning themselves with God's will and purpose,  for the  betterment of all of humanity. 

Non- Conformity, in the context of Romans 12:2, means not patterning oneself  after the world, being shaped by it, or being pressed into its mold . It implies not  going along with what appears to be the  the dominant narrative in the world. The scripture offers wise counsel that we can draw relevance from today. We are living through a period in history where there is much  focus on political power, economic power, and territorial power that is fueled by corruption, greed, exploitation and violence as a means to an end. The scripture invites  us  to stand antithetical to these values and practices. 

Instead of normalizing these worldly influences or “ways of the world” we are are called to be agents of change in this world. 

 Transformation by the renewal of the mind, as in the context of Romans 12:2 brings our attention to the power of God is able to  rescue us from mentally and and spiritually buying into and being lulled to sleep by this narrative of power,   acquisition, consumerism, exploitation and violence. 

During these challenging days we need be intentional and deliberate about having daily retreats in which we have engagement with Scripture, prayer, meditation and fellowship with a faith community. 

These faith practices actually by the grace of God , guide and strengthen us towards resisting the pressure to adopt the values and behaviors of the secular world .

I once interviewed a gentlemen on my podcast at least a year ago and today I saw a social media post his that announced his moving to Spain. I was impressed with why he moved. He was working in corporate America doing well financially with a $300, 000.00 salary. 

However he found himself working 80 hour weeks in a toxic environment. His job had taken over his life and robbed him of being the authentic person that we wanted to be. So he left behind the 300K job and is now living off of $2,500 per month in Spain where his sons are playing soccer and he and his sons are living their dream. 

What I loved about this story was that he detached himself from that which held him captive. I’m pretty confident that  he had to make to adjustments to his consumer spending habits as well. I admire his leap of faith and integrity when it came to building a life of dream fulfillment with his sons. 

This is an example of someone who chose to live life on his terms in line with his values and convictions. 

As much as I admire this story, I’m not recommending this course of action to anyone, because we are all different and have different needs. 

One practical way, that I would like to highlight and recommend in order to resist the pullings of society is  being more intentional about our consumer behaviors, more specifically our spending habits. 

In order to get to a place of spending  counter-culturally,  requires a bit of an analysis of your  spending habits to understand where your money is going, and then praying over the results to determine how to best use those resources in the future . Seek ways to limit or cut out superfluous spending on things that do not add value to life . Are you still paying more for and  buying designer clothes? Are you giving your economic power over to companies that don’t share your social or environmental values? Or you supporting companies that don’t support you? Are you spending disproportionate amounts of money on ordering unhealthy foods online to be delivered to your door? Is jewelry like diamonds so important to you? If so why? Are the products you are purchasing causing  environmental and social damage where they are manufactured or disposed of? 

The truth of the matter is this: if we stopped spending to satisfy media driven addictions, and giving our money to companies that don’t share our values, we can free up our resources to be spent where they can contribute to making our communities a better place and helping to build each other up. 

To begin the journey of living  counter-culturally, and not being conformed to the patterns of this world 

1- be more attentive to your spiritual life, with regular prayer, scripture reflection, and mediation. 

2- Begin to focus on intentional consumption and generosity . Unlike the consumer culture that encourages buying things we do not need, aim to consume intentionally and live with less . Adopt practices of contentment and generosity as creative acts of resistance in an age obsessed with acquisition . 

In these troubling times I believe this is something we need to be reminded of. 

I’m Rev Jay Stuart Glover and you are listening to Faith Talk. These episodes are available on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, You-Tube and other podcast platforms. Please share with family and friends. God Bless you. 

Amen.