"God is in the details" is an old saying, and the older I get, the more I find it's true. Last Friday night I was watching the X Games and the first event was Moto X, an exciting edge-of-your-seat sport where young daredevils go up against unforgiving gravity, jumping into the air on their motorcycles while doing flips, kicks, summersaults, and other crazy stuff. You can't watch Moto X without thinking "someone is going to get seriously hurt!"

And so here comes Travis Pastrana, last to perform. He revs up his bike, zooms down the ramp that shoots him straight up several precarious feet into the air and then, impossibly, he does a DOUBLE BACKFLIP, — i.e., two backward summersaults while still sitting on his motorcycle — then lands safely and triumphantly on both wheels. The crowd erupts as Travis jumps off his bike and pumps his fist in victory. He has shut down the competition to win the gold! History and pandemonium at the X Games!

I was stunned at the young man's accomplishment and was pleasantly surprised when the TV crew interviewed his mom, Debby. On national TV, she was THANKING GOD for watching over her son during the double backflip maneuver!

God is in the details. Every month in Thrasher skateboarding magazine, almost hidden between the zany photos and articles of reckless punk skateboarders, is a totally different and unpretentious ad for Untitled Skateboards, a Christian skateboard team.

"We are not religious," says the ad. "We are followers of Jesus Christ. Everything we are and everything we have holds no titles." The full-page photo of a young airborne skateboarder doing the ultimate kickflip against a background of hard concrete is accompanied by a quotation from 1 Timothy 1:15-16.

Whenever I see that ad I think, "Are these guys for real?" I check out their website and it's all true. These are professional skateboarders who combine ollies and nosegrinds with ministry, touring the country and giving skateboard exhibitions while witnessing to Jesus Christ, who was, after all, the world's first recorded surfer (see Matthew 14:22-33).

God is in the details. Somehow, in the middle of the media flash of pop culture, God emerges. In the places where you least expect him, Christ is there giving a message of hope and reassurance. Our God is an awesome God who reigns from heaven AND earth — even within a Moto X double backflip!

"Wait a minute, dude!" some readers might be thinking. "You mean it's possible to be a thrashing skateboarder or punk rocker AND also believe in God? Can I be extreme and still be a Christian?" ABSOLUTELY!

Some of us are called to be Christians IN the world, to witness for Christ among those who might not be so open to God. Does "witness for Christ" mean preaching memorized Bible verses from street corners? Not necessarily! One can witness for Christ by example: by saying NO to an offer to try drugs or get drunk; by choosing not to use God's name in vain; through acts of kindness and compassion. I believe it's possible to let Christ's light shine without having to hit people over the head with the message.

In the gospels, Jesus spread his Good News by getting to know people where they were, engaging in conversation with them, and telling parables. Let your life be a living parable as you give witness to Christ simply by being yourself.

Sure, there are serious challenges to being a Christian in the world. Temptation is strong and enticing, and you may be called on the carpet for what you believe in. I have to think that the skaters on the Untitled team sometimes get a hard time from other skaters who might not be so openly Christian. Remember, God is in the details! Pray, read scripture, go to Mass and be active at your parish. Be supported by your Christian community and you will have the strength to live out your faith in the world.

Be true to what you believe, in all the big and small details of your life, and Jesus will emerge through you to touch those who might actually need God the most. How wonderfully extreme!

Here's a cool song for extreme Christians. Try skating to this!
Curtis Stephan's To the Extreme