We’re Not Struggling with Overcommitment to Church
THE SHOCK ABSORBER
We live in an age where it’s never been easier to perform our lives for others. Social media has turned us into both the product and the audience — crafting and consuming our own stories in an endless cycle of comparison, performance, and distraction. As Freya India writes, “Marketing your memories desecrates them.”
Yet amidst this noise, there’s a growing hunger for something deeper — a life not built around performance but presence, not curated but real. The Christian story has always offered that: a radically different way of being human.
The Bible calls this way of life being “elect exiles” (1 Peter 1:1). It’s the tension of belonging to God while living in a world with very different values. The first-century church knew this reality well. For them, following Jesus meant standing apart from the surrounding culture — not out of hostility, but out of conviction that the way of Christ was more beautiful and more true.
The Beauty of a Different Story
Living as exiles doesn’t mean retreating or resisting at every turn. It means embracing the alternate story of the gospel — a story shaped by love, humility, and transformation through grace.
When Christians live differently, we invite curiosity. Our generosity, patience, and joy paint a picture of life that the world deeply longs for but struggles to find. This difference isn’t about superiority; it’s about showing the beauty of God’s kingdom in our ordinary lives.
Throughout history, Christians have quietly embodied this better story. In the Roman Empire, when unwanted babies were left to die, believers rescued and adopted them — not to gain influence or pass laws, but because they understood that every person is made in the image of God. Their faithfulness slowly transformed society.
That same spirit is needed today. Whether it’s choosing simplicity over status, relationships over reputation, or truth over trends, every faithful act tells the alternate story of the gospel.
Forming Faith in Community
Living differently isn’t something we can do alone. God designed his people to grow in community — to learn, struggle, and celebrate together. This is especially true for families seeking to raise children in a world that doesn’t share their values.
Faith formation begins in the home, but it is sustained in the church. Parents play a vital role in shaping their children’s understanding of who God is, but they need the support and example of a wider spiritual family. Intergenerational community — where children and adults share life, serve together, and learn from one another — helps both generations grow.
We are all shaped by the people around us. Just as negative peer pressure can form destructive habits, positive community pressure can cultivate Christlike character. When families and churches partner together intentionally, they become powerful spaces of formation, helping young people discover who they are and what really matters.
Choosing Wisely in a Shifting Culture
Faithful living also means thinking deeply about how we engage with the wider world — including education, media, and technology.
Parents often wrestle with questions about schooling: public or private, local or selective, Christian or secular. There’s no one-size-fits-all answer. What matters most is that families make these decisions prayerfully, aware that every choice forms their children in some way.
Andy Crouch once described five possible responses to culture: we can condemn it, critique it, copy it, consume it, or create alternatives to it. Christians are called not to withdraw, but to live confidently as people whose identity is secure in Jesus. Whatever setting we find ourselves in — school, workplace, or online — we can embody God’s alternate story with grace and courage.
The Power of Commitment
Our culture increasingly avoids commitment — whether to people, communities, or even ideas. But commitment is central to Christian discipleship. Following Jesus means giving ourselves fully to him and to his people.
Faith grows through rhythm and repetition: gathering with other believers, worshipping, serving, and sharing life week after week. These practices may seem ordinary, but they are how God shapes us. They also model something profound to our children. What we prioritise, they internalise.
As Tim puts it, “An overcommitment to church is not something we’re struggling with.” The greater challenge is often the opposite — treating church as optional, fitting it in around everything else. Yet the gospel calls us to a deeper story: one of joyful belonging, costly love, and steadfast community.
Living as God’s People
To raise “elect exiles” — and to live as them ourselves — we need to recover a vision of Christian life that is distinctly communal and deeply committed.
When we show up, serve, forgive, celebrate, and stay, we reveal to the world a better way to be human. We remind one another that we are not consumers of faith, but participants in God’s unfolding story.
In a culture that prizes convenience and individual expression, the church’s quiet faithfulness stands as a living witness. It says to the world: this is what love looks like when it lasts.