Who Do You Look Like?

{ June 20, 2015 @ 2:11 pm } · { Uncategorized }

“Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God. Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people. ~ Ephesians 5:1-3

I remember, as a teenager, I was told that I must have gotten my looks from my Daddy and my brains from my Mama. I recall rolling my eyes at the time, but now, I’m blessed to have many attributes in common with both of them. (Yes, even  especially their stubbornness).

Thinking about this recently got me to thinking….

Do I look more like my Heavenly Father or do I look more like the world?

I know that God judges the heart more than outward appearance, but, He also says that what is in the heart overflows into who we are and what we like on the outside.

“A tree is identified by its fruit. If a tree is good, its fruit will be good. If a tree is bad, its fruit will be bad. You brood of snakes! How could evil men like you speak what is good and right? For whatever is in your heart determines what you say. A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart.” ~ Matthew 12:33-35

A tree is identified by its fruit. Figs are never gathered from thorn bushes, and grapes are not picked from bramble bushes. A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart. “So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say?” ~ Luke 6:44-46

The bottom line is that while, yes, God does accept us just as we are. He loves us too much to leave us as we were when He accepted us. Just as we want the best possible life for our kids, He wants the best possible life for us. He, being the Creator of this life, wrote the Manual on this life, so that we could experience optimal effectiveness in our lives and our ministries.

So, I want to look like my Heavenly Daddy, not like the world.

Here’s what I think that looks like:

Hands that never tire of giving…all that He gives me to give.

Feet that never tire of going…everywhere that He sends me.

Eyes that never tire of looking on everyone with compassion…even the ones that are deemed “unlovable” by others.

Ears that never tire of listening for His prompting…to do anything and everything He tells me to.

Lips that never tire of sharing His Gospel with those who desperately need it…anywhere and everywhere I am.

and

A Heart that never tires of praising Him for all that He is, all that He’s done, all that He is doing, and all that He is going to do!

My prayer is that I will always “check” myself daily in the mirror of His Word to make sure that my likeness matches His more than it does that of the world. After all, we are called to be “peculiar people” (1 Peter 2:9).