I have a new mug. It was a gift from my oldest son. When he saw it, he thought it was unique and that I would like it. He got it for me and it wasn’t even my birthday! He’s a good son and he was right. I do like it.

It’s in the shape of an elephant! It’s fun to use because I can hold it by the handle and its trunk! It’s a solid, heavy mug. The other unique feature is that the mug has a dual purpose. The head of the elephant is divided from the rest of the mug, so that when I take my tea bag out I can put it right in there instead of looking for someplace else to plop my messy, wet tea bag. Yes, indeed, I like my new mug!

My elephant mug caused me to think about all the other different mugs we have in the house. Since I live with my daughter and her family now, we have quite the collection of mugs! (And it’s getting bigger!) Not only are there a lot of mugs, but there’s a lot of variety as well. Each mug is different.

The mugs are all different colors, shapes, and sizes. We have cute and quirky mugs, inspirational and religious mugs, seasonal and holiday mugs. We have mugs that are souvenirs, personal, and special. We have old mugs, new mugs, his and her mugs. We even have mugs that are practical, plain, and plastic. The mugs are all different and yet they are the same.

They are the same in two ways:

1/ They are all mugs! They all have the attributes of a mug. 2/ They all have a purpose! They are able to hold something.

I have a very cute, unusual, somewhat homely little mug in my room. It is really different! It was a handmade gift from my daughter who was taking a ceramics class. This was one of her first attempts and she made it with love for me.

Even though it looks a bit awkward I know this is a mug because it has all the attributes of a mug. She created it in the image of a mug. But it doesn’t just look like a mug, it is a mug! It’s a real mug, because it has the ability to hold something. I may not use it for my hot tea, but it does make a great votive candle holder.

Have you ever met someone who was, well, ‘different’? I know I have. Their personalities can be abrasive, or obnoxious, or a bit eccentric. (At least, in our opinion!) Sometimes people just look different. They don’t dress like us; their hair is weird; and what have they done to their body?! These people just don’t fit in with our kind of people. But we need to remember this: They may be ‘different’, but they’re still the same! Like us, they carry burdens and scars, they too feel joy and sorrow, and have the same needs and longings that we do. All of us are different and yet all of us are the same.

We are the same in two ways:

1/ We are all people! More importantly, as the Bible puts it, “we are the offspring of God”. We have all been created by Him and in His image. We need to remember this as we look at someone suspiciously, because they appear to be different from us. We need to view people as God sees them.

2/ We all have a purpose! Because we are made by God, we can be sure that each person has a purpose. And we need to honor that. God can use that person who is not like us in places and with people that we never could!

Certainly not everyone recognizes or realizes that they are created by God and made for a purpose. Some people are like runaway children denying the very existence of a heavenly Father and failing to fulfill the purpose God has planned for them, but that does not mean we can discount them or despise them. We still need to treat them with kindness and respect, because whether they acknowledge it or not, they are one of God’s creations.

Perhaps you feel like you are the odd one, the different one who is being rejected and neglected by others, shunned by society. And maybe you think that people don’t understand you or like you or even want to be around you. Then you need to recognize this about yourself: You are a person made by God and He created you for a purpose!

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do. –Ephesians 2:10

Considering your uniqueness and my idiosyncrasies and our individuality, each one of us is different! But we need to remember that in spite of those differences and in the very most important way we are the same!

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