Not of This World

I don’t know if any other missionary kid has ever felt this way, but one of my main struggles of being a third culture kid is trying to figure out who I really am. When with Ugandans, I put on the Ugandan version of me; when with Americans, I put on the American version of me. But many times I’ll be in bed at night trying to figure out who I am. Am I an American or a Ugandan? My family is American, but I live in Uganda with Ugandans.

I hate it when I’m walking down the road here in Uganda and everyone is staring at me, seeing me as different from them because of my light skin and blondish hair. And even when I’m in America, I’m still different, unsure of how things work there. Regardless of how hard I try to fit in, I never can. So who am I really? Which culture is mine?

I just recently came to the conclusion: I’m not a Ugandan, nor am I an American. Who am I? I’m a Christian. Period. No comment. My citizenship is in heaven; I’m not of this world.

My problem is that many times I will try to fit into this world and act like a part of it. I will try to conform to it, just to fit in. But I’m a Christian. I’m not from here. I’m not in my native land. I’m not at my home. So in the same way that I don’t fit in as a white person in Uganda, I also don’t fit in this world. So I actually want to let everyone know that I’m not from here. I am different. I’m not in my home. I want to be an odd man out.

So, I asked myself, how should a citizen of heaven act?

The answer: Like Jesus did.

He was most definitely different from normal people of this world. He stuck out like a sore thumb. Everyone knew that He wasn’t from here because He was loving, kind, and he spoke out against the culture.

I’ve decided that I want to stop trying to fit in. Instead, I want to stick out! I want everyone who sees me to know that I’m not from here and to know that I’m a child of the king. I want them to know that I am a Christian, by my love, my example, and my culture. My native culture is not Ugandan or American; it’s heavenly.

What about you? Where is your citizenship? Is it obvious to those around you?