I think it’s time for a reality show that actually shows normal people, living ordinary lives, going through difficulties, joys, fun times, death, pain, grief. Thus it would be the life of moi and probably a lot of other people out there. Most of us like to think we’re living in the real world, but are we and what exactly is the real world anyway?

If you measure yourself by social media standards, the perfect family has parents that look like they came off the cover of a fashion magazine. The kids are meticulously dressed and well behaved. The dog is a purebred and the house they live in is more of the same kind of perfection. The meals they eat are never fails. Their car or cars are the newest on the block.

The truth is that this so-called “reality” is probably laced with huge credit card debt, a dysfunctional family that rarely communicates except by text and most of their meals are consumed at fast food restaurants. Our lives aren’t Pinterest perfect. We suffer – we get frustrated – we lose our temper – we experience all sorts of things that people don’t want to know about, but who wants to see real reality? We instead look for the glamourous, the intelligent, the perfect, the outwardly successful to mold our own identity and usually wind up sadly unsuccessful.

So how does one get through life with those kinds of expectations? Living within our means – setting a moral base for our children – putting away technology and talking together – eat meals together whenever possible – communicate as you drive to sporting events or other activities. In other words, be a family. Watching others and trying to imitate them is as old as time, but we are not all alike. Look to God’s reality for an example. His Word tells us to love each other as we love ourselves. We should encourage each other through our prayers and help. We should be willing to lay down our lives for our friends. When we’re part of God’s family, we’re no longer like those in the world. His spirit now lives in us and we are forever changed.