I WANNA BE COOL
JANUARY 2013
by Lisa Maki
Who doesn’t want to be cool? Everybody wants to be cool. If you don’t, then perhaps you tried to but failed. Nevertheless, all of us want to fit in and be accepted. And the cool ones are those who people like instantly. They are the ones who have lots of friends. They are the ones who become popular.
There are different categories of coolness that you will see among your peers. There are the cool intellectuals, cool gangsters, cool jocks, and cool hotties. There are so many other categories that fall in between but what I mentioned here are the major groups of cool people, or at least they think they are cool. They don’t change. They remain year after year after year and generation after generation.
Whatever group you want to be labeled with, the point is you want to be cool. It is cool to be cool. That’s how I’ve always felt about it. It feels good when people like you, more so if they really like you. This is why it is everybody’s dream to be popular. People simply want to be noticed and recognized.
Before I go any further, bear in mind that the reasons why people want to be cool are: to fit in, to be accepted, to be noticed, and to be recognized.
The funny thing is, when you want to fit in, you end up looking like everybody else. So what’s cool about that? Really, the reason some people end up more popular than others is because they have something that others don’t. Most popular people are trend-setters. They start something that nobody else has thought of.
My personal opinion is this: If you want to be cool, then be different! Then you will really stand out. For sure you will be noticed and you will gain recognition. Perhaps you will not fit in at the start, because you are trying to be different than everyone else, but eventually, people will be the ones coming to you because they realize that they want to be like you.
Unfortunately, those who dare to be different, do the wrong things. Let me use my husband as a very good example here. He wanted to be cool in school. He was kind of popular with girls but they wanted him more as a friend than a boyfriend. He didn’t belong to any of the categories I mentioned above. It was then that he decided to be really different by getting hooked on drugs and doing other stuff that kicked him out of the school, put him in jail, and hindered him from pursuing a lot of his dreams.
Other girls I know decided to be popular by sleeping with popular guys in school. They either ended up pregnant in their teens or ended up with a “whore” reputation and were therefore not taken seriously by guys. These girls who used to look so cool became the worst looking people in their early twenties.
Doing bad things may instantly make you popular or different but it will eventually catch up on you. The bad guys back in high school were considered “hot”; but these same bad guys became the bums later on.
So you want to know what will really make you stand out? You want to know what will make you different from the rest? You want to know what will make you set the trend? You want to know what will make you popular without doing bad things?
Here is my answer: Be all about Jesus!
If you are not a Christian, you may say, “What the ___”? I don’t want to be a weirdo! I totally feel you on this one. I thought back then that being a Christian is “uncool”. Now if you are a Christian but kind of scared or ashamed to represent Jesus boldly, this may stir you up a little or it may scare you all the more. But if you are a Christian who boldly represents the Lord and being called a weirdo for it, then you know for sure what I am talking about.
You will for sure be labeled a “Jesus Freak” or “weirdo” but you will definitely stand out from the rest, which is what being cool is all about in the first place. In fact, cool people are either the most liked or most hated. Most of the time they are most hated because they are a great source of envy. I mean just look at the more popular artists ... Eminem, Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Britney Spears, etc. They are very much hated too. Even Taylor Swift who seems to be the nicest and most wholesome female artist receives hate mails.
When you represent Jesus in a bold way ... talking about Him, living His lifestyle, wearing outfits that speak of Him ... you will surely be set apart from the rest. Nobody really wants to do this which is why you are guaranteed to stand out. God Himself said that He chose His people to set them apart ... to make them different from the rest of the world.
Honestly, nobody will like you at the start but as you continue representing Jesus, obeying Him, being the light in your environment, helping other people, smiling at everyone even when they’re mocking you, then eventually people will start getting curious not only of you but the Jesus you represent.
While other girls are wearing all these sexy outfits and heavy make-up, you can continue to remain more fashionable by dressing up modestly and eventually guys will see that you’re different and will even pay more attention to you. If you’re a guy and you continue to be a gentleman to all girls in your class while other guys are acting like jerks, the girls will end up liking you more than the hottest guys in class. If you remain committed and focused on God, you will also be able to remain focused and committed on your studies, thereby allowing you to excel in class. This for sure will make others admire you.
You can be the coolest person in representing Jesus. You don’t have to be rigid and boring about it. You can wear the coolest Jesus outfits by making the outfits yourself. My husband and I painted our shirts last summer and I even did it on my jeans. I made gold glittery Jesus signs on my jeans and shirts. I also painted a big gold cross on one of my jeans. My husband converted his jerseys into Jesus shirts. You can go creatively crazy on this one and you will be the only one who has what you have, unless people start asking you to make one for them, which will be the coolest.
When you are all about Jesus you can have the most fun time in the world without doing anything bad. And years later, you will be much younger and stronger than everyone else because you lived a clean life. While others are already tired of their lives, you are still so fresh.
So if you are not a Christian and you are getting curious about how to be one, email me at [email protected].
If you are a Christian and you have not represented Jesus boldly, then I challenge you right now. If nobody knows you are a Christian, then how will the lost even get saved? You were placed by God in your environment so you can be an example to everyone ... so they will get curious about you and your God, and you can use that as a platform to preach the Gospel. If you need more advice on this one, you can also email me.
Now if you are a Christian and you are representing Jesus boldly among your peers, praise GOD! I want to encourage you even more. Keep persevering even if nobody accepts you. At the end of the day, it is not what the world thinks is cool but what God thinks is cool.
There are different categories of coolness that you will see among your peers. There are the cool intellectuals, cool gangsters, cool jocks, and cool hotties. There are so many other categories that fall in between but what I mentioned here are the major groups of cool people, or at least they think they are cool. They don’t change. They remain year after year after year and generation after generation.
Whatever group you want to be labeled with, the point is you want to be cool. It is cool to be cool. That’s how I’ve always felt about it. It feels good when people like you, more so if they really like you. This is why it is everybody’s dream to be popular. People simply want to be noticed and recognized.
Before I go any further, bear in mind that the reasons why people want to be cool are: to fit in, to be accepted, to be noticed, and to be recognized.
The funny thing is, when you want to fit in, you end up looking like everybody else. So what’s cool about that? Really, the reason some people end up more popular than others is because they have something that others don’t. Most popular people are trend-setters. They start something that nobody else has thought of.
My personal opinion is this: If you want to be cool, then be different! Then you will really stand out. For sure you will be noticed and you will gain recognition. Perhaps you will not fit in at the start, because you are trying to be different than everyone else, but eventually, people will be the ones coming to you because they realize that they want to be like you.
Unfortunately, those who dare to be different, do the wrong things. Let me use my husband as a very good example here. He wanted to be cool in school. He was kind of popular with girls but they wanted him more as a friend than a boyfriend. He didn’t belong to any of the categories I mentioned above. It was then that he decided to be really different by getting hooked on drugs and doing other stuff that kicked him out of the school, put him in jail, and hindered him from pursuing a lot of his dreams.
Other girls I know decided to be popular by sleeping with popular guys in school. They either ended up pregnant in their teens or ended up with a “whore” reputation and were therefore not taken seriously by guys. These girls who used to look so cool became the worst looking people in their early twenties.
Doing bad things may instantly make you popular or different but it will eventually catch up on you. The bad guys back in high school were considered “hot”; but these same bad guys became the bums later on.
So you want to know what will really make you stand out? You want to know what will make you different from the rest? You want to know what will make you set the trend? You want to know what will make you popular without doing bad things?
Here is my answer: Be all about Jesus!
If you are not a Christian, you may say, “What the ___”? I don’t want to be a weirdo! I totally feel you on this one. I thought back then that being a Christian is “uncool”. Now if you are a Christian but kind of scared or ashamed to represent Jesus boldly, this may stir you up a little or it may scare you all the more. But if you are a Christian who boldly represents the Lord and being called a weirdo for it, then you know for sure what I am talking about.
You will for sure be labeled a “Jesus Freak” or “weirdo” but you will definitely stand out from the rest, which is what being cool is all about in the first place. In fact, cool people are either the most liked or most hated. Most of the time they are most hated because they are a great source of envy. I mean just look at the more popular artists ... Eminem, Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Britney Spears, etc. They are very much hated too. Even Taylor Swift who seems to be the nicest and most wholesome female artist receives hate mails.
When you represent Jesus in a bold way ... talking about Him, living His lifestyle, wearing outfits that speak of Him ... you will surely be set apart from the rest. Nobody really wants to do this which is why you are guaranteed to stand out. God Himself said that He chose His people to set them apart ... to make them different from the rest of the world.
Honestly, nobody will like you at the start but as you continue representing Jesus, obeying Him, being the light in your environment, helping other people, smiling at everyone even when they’re mocking you, then eventually people will start getting curious not only of you but the Jesus you represent.
While other girls are wearing all these sexy outfits and heavy make-up, you can continue to remain more fashionable by dressing up modestly and eventually guys will see that you’re different and will even pay more attention to you. If you’re a guy and you continue to be a gentleman to all girls in your class while other guys are acting like jerks, the girls will end up liking you more than the hottest guys in class. If you remain committed and focused on God, you will also be able to remain focused and committed on your studies, thereby allowing you to excel in class. This for sure will make others admire you.
You can be the coolest person in representing Jesus. You don’t have to be rigid and boring about it. You can wear the coolest Jesus outfits by making the outfits yourself. My husband and I painted our shirts last summer and I even did it on my jeans. I made gold glittery Jesus signs on my jeans and shirts. I also painted a big gold cross on one of my jeans. My husband converted his jerseys into Jesus shirts. You can go creatively crazy on this one and you will be the only one who has what you have, unless people start asking you to make one for them, which will be the coolest.
When you are all about Jesus you can have the most fun time in the world without doing anything bad. And years later, you will be much younger and stronger than everyone else because you lived a clean life. While others are already tired of their lives, you are still so fresh.
So if you are not a Christian and you are getting curious about how to be one, email me at [email protected].
If you are a Christian and you have not represented Jesus boldly, then I challenge you right now. If nobody knows you are a Christian, then how will the lost even get saved? You were placed by God in your environment so you can be an example to everyone ... so they will get curious about you and your God, and you can use that as a platform to preach the Gospel. If you need more advice on this one, you can also email me.
Now if you are a Christian and you are representing Jesus boldly among your peers, praise GOD! I want to encourage you even more. Keep persevering even if nobody accepts you. At the end of the day, it is not what the world thinks is cool but what God thinks is cool.
Lisa Maki is the founder, publisher, and editor of God'z Gurlz. More about Lisa at ...
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