14 October 2020

I know I share a lot about my grandchildren, but I guess they are a huge part of my life now (I have 10 of them) and God speaks to me through them. God can speak His heart, His mind, His direction through people and/or circumstances in our lives, if we listen well. It is a learning tool of discernment.

Willow, my three-year-old granddaughter, came home with her Mum the other day and sighed very heavily. Melissa, her Mother, asked her what was wrong. “I’m tired,” she said. “I had a hard day at daycare!”

Just like her mother saying, “I’m tired. I had a hard day at the office.”

Then she was sitting in the back seat of the car in her car seat and asked Mum for her dummy. Melissa said, “I can’t get it, it’s in the boot in your backpack.”

Willow replied, “Mum, how do I live like this!”

These both brought smiles to my face.

But the Holy Spirit did not talk to me till a few days later at work.

Melissa came to help me with a computer problem. I normally ask her husband Scott who is a whizz at computer technology, but he was busy.

Melissa was leaning over my shoulder, trying to look at the problem and then stated, “Mum, you have 58,000 unread emails!!!!!!” (ALL Junk!)

Then the phrase that spoke to me was said by Melissa, “How do you live like this!”

Just like her daughter Willow. Her daughter had imitated her in her language, in her words, in her inflections, in her habits and attitudes.

That’s when it clicked.

Am I imitating Christ? In my language, words, inflections, habits, attitudes, love towards others…….

Am I being a reflection of my Father in heaven? Reflecting a never-ending love, reflecting to others forgiveness, for we have been given that forgiveness from Jesus ourselves.

Just like Jesus shared with us that he was the reflection of the Father.

⁷ If you really know me, you will know my Father as well.

John 14:7 NIV

Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father… ¹⁰ Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.

John 14:9-10

Most of you would have in your family someone who is the spitting image of another member of your family tree, in the same generation or in generations gone before. Some not just in image but in personality and gifts. This comes from the genes. Not from our doing at all.

We have been given the DNA of Christ, His “genes.” We are all His sons and daughters. So too we should be imitating Christ’s behaviour, Christ’s love and Christ’s self-sacrifice if we are truly to call ourselves Christians – followers of Christ and have His DNA.

 We are encouraged by Paul in Ephesians 5:1-2

5 ¹ Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, ² and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Ephesians 5:1-2 NRSV

Why “therefore”?

It states before this line in scripture verse 31 if you are going to “put aside all malice, bitterness, anger, wrangling and slander and BE kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as Christ has forgiven you” then do it by being an imitator of Christ.

This is how you are meant to live.

Now we are not perfect, but are we reflecting upon our words, our actions, our attitudes and habits? Are we recognizing areas of our lives that need changing for the better so that we can be an imitator of God?

Next time one of my family members copies, even unknowingly, one of my other family members in their comments or behaviours I am going to acknowledge God as my Father, Jesus as my Saviour and friend, and I want to copy Him in all things.

May these jottings from my journal inspire you to believe in and fall in love with Christ- the hope of the world, as stated in Jeremiah 17:7, ‘Blessed is the man who believes and trusts in and relies on the Lord and whose hope and confident expectation is the Lord!’

Love

Rosemary

Every week groups of ladies meet together to chat about the things I raise in my weekly blog post and to chat about life in general. We call these ‘Heart Connect’ groups. If you would like more information please click HERE.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Are you imitating Christ in your words, actions and behaviour?

What do you need to put aside to imitate Christ more?