Regardless of who you are, isn't there a side of you that is still affected by peer pressure? Perhaps you're a bit older and you think that such talk no longer applies to you. Well, I encourage you to think again. Peer pressure doesn't just apply towards young people, it's saturated in every aspect of culture. There's a part of you that can't escape the social pressures and expectations of life.
When you think of peer pressure, what mental images come to your mind?
I think of a classroom. You know what I'm talking about, don't you? There's that student that isn't really paying attention to the teacher's lecture. Suddenly, the teacher asks a question to the class and all the students hands go up, including that student. When the teacher calls on that student, he draws a blank and can't answer the question because he didn't hear it. He then tells the teacher to repeat the question. When the teacher asks why his hand was raised in the first place, he responds by saying, "Because everyone else raised their hands."
Peer pressure.
Doing what you're "supposed to do" is a powerful motivation. This kind of idea is entrenched in the way we think about our place in society.
I'm always amused when I see the new styles emerge in clothing retail stores. As soon as the mannequins are fashionably dressed in the store front windows, flocks of people rush to purchase similarly new wardrobes. Remember when tattered jeans first came out? How about those T-shirts that have the brand-name stitched into the front of the shirt with big, bold letters?
Last years trends are out and this years trends are in.
I even had a guy at Fossil (a watch store in the mall) tell me to hold off in getting a watch until the spring colors were in.
That's what fashion is, isn't it?
Trends, pressures, expectations…
That's what fashion is, isn't it?
Trends, pressures, expectations…
Peer pressure is a broad topic that's not only applied to middle school kids; it's a motivation that continues to affect the clothes we wear, the watches we buy, the books we read, the food we eat, and the sports we watch.
Fashion isn't the same as faith but sometimes this motivation affects the way we act as Christians.
My wife and I attended a church awhile back that stressed the idea of "looking your Sunday best." We weren't used to wearing our best clothes to church, but because we were in an environment where people wore their best, we did as well. We wanted to fit in and do what we were "supposed to do." Not to brag, but my family looked so good, we could have taken family photos every Sunday morning. P.S. My wife is smokin' (just sayin).
Doesn't this kind of thing carry over in Christian circles?
You're supposed to do this…
You're supposed to do that…
Make sure you look, dress, talk, laugh, give, and drive a certain way…
Because that's what good Christians do, isn't it?
I imagine Jesus' disciples asking, "Lord, just tell us what we're supposed to do." In response, I picture Jesus telling His disciples, "Look, there's people doing what they're supposed to do, but I don't recognize them because they're not doing the right things for the right reasons." (If you want to read it yourself, check out the situation by clicking here: Matthew 7: 15-23)
In every church I've ever been a part of, there are people who have stumbled upon this reality. At one point, they found themselves raising their hands like everyone else in the classroom. They didn't know why they were raising their hands, they just did because that's what they saw everyone else doing. But sometimes, a new and deeper reality is presented to these people. They discover a better reason for doing the right thing and it fundamentally has nothing to do with peer pressure. This new and larger reason often stems from something deep inside - an encounter of sorts. And when people come to this point in their faith, they feel free and liberated and released like never before.
Some of us have spent years doing the right thing for the wrong reasons. We've found ourselves worn out, frustrated, depleted, depressed, and unfulfilled. And I say this from personal experience. It's exhausting to put energy towards something you have no passion for. Sometimes it's humiliating to get called on when you don't know why you raised your hand in the first place.
I believe that Jesus wants us to know why we're raising our hands.
Why are we raising our hands?
Why are we doing what we're "supposed to do?"
Is it peer pressure?
Or is it something much, much more…
Because when we do the right things for the right reasons, we'll know what Jesus meant when he talked about having "life to the full."
I don't know about you but,
I don't want to just know Jesus,
I want Jesus to know me.
[Check out the story: Matthew 7:15-23]
[Another text to consider: John 6:40]
