lessons from an atheist…

Oct 22, 2009 | 206 comments

Instantly chop my hair off? Sure! Take a Nazirite vow? Sounds like fun! Compete in a mud run? Sign me up! Take a hip-hop class with professional dancers while you have no training? Doin’ it!

My friends roll their eyes when I share my latest harebrained commitment. Everyone knows I’m going to regret these spontaneous decisions, but I don’t care. When Life calls me out to the proverbial dance floor, it’s as if I have to bust out my windmill head-spin and pop up with the ever-flagrant, You Got Served! Maybe it’s the underdog in me. Maybe it’s stupidity. All I know is no matter what, I have to rise to the occasion.

I’m reading A.J. Jacobs‘ latest book, A Year of Biblical Living. I bought the book simply to read about the atheist who decided to take the bible literally. And when I say literally I mean devoting 365 days to living out hilarious adherence to the Old and New Testament. I’m sure people must think I’m like the crazy lady from Venice beach who pushes her grocery cart full of cats and talks to herself, because when I read this book I talk to myself when I’m by myself. Yes, as in out loud. Even worse, I smother laughs and snorts in Starbucks which I try to play off as a coughs. Yes, I’m that cool.

I’m finishing the book and instead of the elation which comes from completion, there’s a disconcerting feeling I call conviction. I can’t explain it–it’s not like a voice or a crop circle that mysteriously appears as a sign. It’s something beyond me. Life is challenging me to live biblically. It’s straight-up krumping in my face and calling me out to live a life worthy of the gospel (or at least the title of Christian).

I mean, this shouldn’t be hard, right? I’ve read the bible cover-to-cover three times. I’ve hugged orphans in Mexico and shared Jesus in Japan. I’ve given money away to homeless people with witty signs and gave a sandwich to the crazy cat-lady from Venice beach. So what can I learn from the Jewish, atheist, germophobic writer who lives in New York? Apparently how to actually live out what I believe.

I’ll be blogging about it for a week or so. When will it start? Uh, when you see me doing the Robot and the Roger Rabbit on the dance floor, you’ll know it’s started.

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