Resembling Him

Resembling Him

Text: Romans 8:29; Col. 3:10

 The older I get, the more I resemble my father. Not just in appearance, but in mannerisms and thought processes as well. And the older I get, the less that this development bothers me. I can remember, as a teenager, thinking that my father was really out of touch with real life. He always thought I should mow the grass before I went to play baseball, because, for some reason, he suspected that if I didn’t, I wouldn’t get around to it later. He would leave the house on Sunday afternoon right in the middle of the football game, just to go back to the church and study a little bit before the evening service. I couldn’t understand that then, but now, I can’t remember when I last watched an entire professional football game. His love for the Word of God and his love for reading have always amazed me, but now in my advancing years, I am learning their importance in the life of someone who truly wants to make a difference for the Lord. As I have grown, I have come to appreciate the fruits of a life that is fully committed to the Savior and so I have begun to recognize the value of following in my father’s footsteps. The devotionals over the past several weeks were drawn from my writings a few years ago during a 50-day Spiritual Journey that was called On My Way Out.  It dealt with living victoriously while on our journey here below.  Hopefully, we have seen the desirability of living the victorious Christian life. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy and peace, things that all of us long for in our lives. We have spoken of the keys to achieving and maintaining the level of spiritual maturity that nurtures these fruits. We are now to the place where we should be able to distinguish between those things that will fertilize and those things that will stunt our spiritual growth. I want to leave you with a few words from Max Lucado’s book, Just Like Jesus.

“You aren’t stuck with today’s personality. You aren’t condemned to grumpydom. You are changeable. Even if you’ve worried each day of your life, you needn’t worry the rest of your life. So what if you were born with a sour outlook, you don’t have to die with one. God will change you. And He will change you to be just like Jesus. Can you think of a better offer? Jesus felt no guilt; God wants you to feel no guilt. Jesus had no bad habits; God wants to do away with yours. Jesus had no fears; God wants the same for you. Jesus had no anxiety about death; you needn’t either. God’s desire, his plan, his ultimate goal is to make you into the image of Christ. God loves you just the way you are, but he refuses to leave you there. He wants you to be just like Jesus.”

 

I hope that is your desire, your plan, your ultimate goal as well.

 

1. How have you grown spiritually from this daily devotional?

2. What is God asking you to do with what you have learned?

 

Does your life bear a family resemblance to your heavenly Father?