On Pursuing 360 Degree Living (and Christianity)

Back in the early days of Karis, I still drove a remnant of my single days, a red 1995 Jeep Wrangler. While the short wheel base led to a bumpy ride, it also meant I could pop in and out of traffic with ease. I could also - and even with the top up - easily see all the cars surrounding me. It felt like I had a 360 degree perspective on the highway at all times.

However, when that Jeep turned into a downpayment on a minivan, I was introduced to a problem I hadn’t experienced in awhile - a massive blindspot. Now, if I switched lanes without carefully looking, others would get hurt. I could cause a massive pileup, harming myself and my precious little passengers in the process.

This provides a powerful metaphor for the days in which we find ourselves. I commonly see friends on social media either threatening to block people with whom they disagree or bragging about having already done so. Now, I certainly understand. Sometimes, enough is enough. I’ve deleted and unfriended my fair share of “friends” over the past few years. However, the cumulative effective of these purges has left us living in vacuums and shouting in echo chambers. We’re left surrounded by people who look and act and think just like us. We “cancel” voices that could actually help us. 

“I’ve got your back.” We’re all familiar with that expression. “Watch your six.” We’ve probably uttered those words, too. They remind us of our need to see what’s behind us and to help others see what lurks over their shoulders. And we need to serve each other in this way in these days. We need to pursue 360 degree living together.

Protection

First, we need protection. In this “present evil age” that threatens to overtake us, we desperately need brothers and sisters to watch our backs (Gal. 1:4). Our enemy prowls and roars, “seeking someone to devour” (1 Pet. 5:8). We need others to prevent us from being overtaken by the surrounding culture. 

I’ve been grieved as I’ve seen people professing faith in Christ who’ve championed ideas at odds with the Christian story. They’ve waged wars against the culture, while unknowingly being held captive by the culture themselves. We must fight off the beast, but we often don’t even know he’s there. It’s critical to live in community with others who can warn us of his approach and shout at us when we’re in his grasp. We need protection.  

Perspective

Second, we need perspective. If we’re in Christ, we’ve been brought into a family - one comprised of “every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev. 5:9). We’re called to love and serve one another. We’re to “rejoice with those who rejoice” and “weep with those who weep” (Rom. 12:15). However, we can’t help if we’re blind to our brother’s needs. We can’t care for our sister if we’re deaf to her cries. In addition, we’re called to a mission together, to share and show the amazing grace of God in Christ to our city and to the world. We’re unable to love people well if we don’t know them, if we don’t understand them.

We need others to help us see outside of our own, assumed culture. We don’t just need people to say, “I’ve got your back.” We need folks to say, “I’ll help you see.” It’s so discouraging to see professing believers confidently proclaim their understanding of issues and events, while ignorant of the stories and wounds of others - brothers and sisters next to them in the pew, people made in God’s image they encounter in their streets. It’s important to dwell in fellowship with others who can warn of us ways we might not fully see and understand what’s true and real. We need perspective. 

This is why we need a church community - why we need to live life with other Christ-followers, and preferably others who don’t see the world just as we do. It’s why we need to fellowship with believers in other church communities. This diversity keeps us from being overtaken by the world around us. Its helps us recognize and see around the world that’s within us. They help us toward a 360 degree view of things. Today, we desperately need to hear the voices of black and brown brothers and sisters who’ve continued to suffer for hundreds of years in our country. And many of us also need to hear white Christians reminding us and challenging us to listen to our minority brothers and sisters’ perspectives.  

Now, in no way do I think I am without my own blindspots. I still had my struggles seeing, even back driving that red Jeep. Should we find ourselves thinking that we’ve arrived and can see it all, we’re perhaps in the most danger. Humbly acknowledging we need help is the first step, of course. Yet it’s a posture that we’ll need to adopt for the rest of our lives. It’s too easy to look in our rearview mirror, not getting a full picture, really only seeing our face’s reflection. We need other passengers who can help us see. That can keep us all safe. And protect all of those on this road of life.