Maybe it’s because I’m listening for it, but I keep hearing the phrase, “This may be a crazy idea, but…”
Recently, I heard a sermon preached about the four friends who lowered another friend through the roof to be healed by Jesus. After unsuccessfully trying to get into a crowded house, they carried their friend on a stretcher to the rooftop of the home in which Jesus was speaking; lifted up part of the thatch roof; and lowered the stretcher down.
I wonder which friend spoke up and said, “I have a crazy idea. Let’s take him up to the rooftop, dig through the thatch, and lower our friend down in front of Jesus!”
What did the other friends say? What did they think? How did they respond?
Maybe we think of crazy ideas as absurd. Maybe we call them brainstorms. We might consider them to be hare-brained, fantasy, or ridiculous. It’s a wide spectrum, with some people being more comfortable with crazy ideas than other folks.
But Jesus had encouraging words for those friends that day. Scripture says, when Jesus saw their faith, He began to heal the paralyzed man now before Him (Read Mark 2).
It might be that Jesus understood what it took to get the friend there. It might be that Jesus was impressed by someone going to so much trouble. But it could be that Jesus had lots of crazy ideas too – and they inspired people to live differently.
- Turn the other cheek (Matthew 5:39).
- Walk a second mile (Matthew 5:41).
- Don’t take anything with you for the journey – trust me (Luke 9:3).
- Sell it all and give to the poor (Matthew 19:21).
- Do not worry about your life (Matthew 6:25).
- You can’t love God and money (Matthew 6:24).
- You give those 5000 people something to eat (Mark 6:37).
- The first shall be last (Matthew 20:16).
It’s true that Jesus knows everything. His ideas may sound crazy, but they are perfect.
For us, there are obvious cautions with our crazy ideas: not holding on to our ideas too tightly; passing them through a series of filters before actually trying them; etc. But dreaming, thinking outside the box, and opening the door to what might seem impossible, may be what you need for today.
Here are seven things a crazy idea may do
- Bring energy.
- Generate more ideas.
- Increase enthusiasm.
- Spur on big thinking.
- Ignite faith.
- Promote possibilities.
- Accomplish goals.
What crazy ideas might you need to dream up today? Where are you stuck? What problem are you trying to solve?
Maybe you need a crazy idea.
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