July 1, 2001

When Ralph Wilson wished to provide the fans with a fresh new look of the Buffalo Bills, he went out and hired a new coach from outside the existing staff. When evaluating a program or institution, it is not uncommon for an outsider to be the one least hindered by a prejudice. When management and labor are not able to come to an agreement, an outside mediator is often brought to the table to broker a resolution. Being from, or on the outside, allows for perspective, vision, and insight free of bias not often found in those on the inside.

In Thorton Wilder's famous play "OUR TOWN," Emily dies in childbirth. In the afterlife, the spirits grant her one wish, and she chooses the privilege of watching herself and her family live out one day of the life she left behind. She selects her twelfth birthday and sees herself and her family preparing for a party to be held in her honor.

Perched on the "OUTSIDE," she is shocked an dismayed at how she and the members of her family fail to pay attention to one another and how they are unaware of the preciousness of time. They do not recognize, as she does, that they will not have this day forever. Emily agonizes as she watches herself and her family live with so little realization of its importance.

Being "ON THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN" can be very revealing. It permits an angle of vision not available to those on the inside. As Emily found, it provides a vantage point from which to realize what is truly important and what is not and what is truly precious and what is not.

I believe there is great significance in the fact that Jesus had "nowhere to lay his head," and that he was born in a stable outside of an established inn. Ultimately he would work from outside the recognized religions and political systems of his day. He would also spend his time listening to "OUTSIDERS", the tax collectors, the prostitutes, the lame, and the blind. And looking beyond his own death, he told us that we would find him among those outside the mainstream of life. Jesus surely found the "OUTSIDE" to be an excellent vantage point for work and vision and ministry.

The three individuals who were intent in following Jesus were rebuffed because none of them were willing to stand outside the norms and patterns and customs of the day. Had they been willing, they would have had the vantage point necessary not only to be of service to God, but to secure an angle of vision enabling them to see what is deserving of time and attention and importance.

SO THE QUESTION: WHAT OUTSIDER ROLE MIGHT JESUS ASSUME TODAY? WITH WHOM MIGHT HE BE MOST COMFORTABLE?

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