Oddballs and Wierdos

Have you ever watched the movie Meet the Robinsons? It's an animated tale of an orphan boy, Lewis...an eccentric orphan boy who is considered "unadoptable." He wants to be an inventor, yet numerous failed (and dangerous) inventions leave potential adoptive parents with the certainty that he is not the son for them.

Transported to the future by a boy named Wilbur Robinson, Lewis meets the most unusual family - a family of oddballs and mismatches. The father of the family encourages Lewis to stay true to who he is and trust that there is a family out there just for him.

In true Walt Disney fashion - we discover that there is, and Lewis is adopted and loved for his zany inventor tendencies.

Maybe it's the writer in me, or perhaps it was just a particularly emotional week of the month, but I watched the movie with a lump in my throat and tears brimming my lower eyelids as I related to the spiritual parallels.

We're all a bit odd in our own ways, with a broad range of talents and abilities. Sometimes we try to stifle who we are in hopes that our eccentric side won't stand out too much. Because what it really all boils down to is that we want to fit in. We want to belong.

In spite of our foibles and shortcomings, God adopts us as His own. He doesn't try to change us or stifle our weirdness, but invites us to come exactly as we are. God doesn't look around for a son or daughter who is thinner or smarter, one whose laugh is less like a hyena's, or one who has "realistic" goals and plans. Nope. He just looks at you and me and says, "Hey, come on over. Welcome to the family. Now stand in front of the camera with all the other kids for a family portrait."

Do you sometimes wonder if you need to change who you are before you can come to God? Think you need to be more holy, more attractive, less "out there," less needy, better at prayer, quieter about speaking your mind, just plain different than you are? I've got good news - He doesn't want a watered-down version of you or me. He doesn't ask us to change so that we all fit a particular mold. He loves us all as unique individuals - we're His kids.

If you need to be reminded of that truth, as I often do, take 90 minutes and watch Meet the Robinsons. (It doesn't hurt if you have PMS, either!)

"I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters," says the LORD Almighty.
~ 2 Corinthians 6:18