More like Jesus
One thing that I often think about in my daily life is how to be more like Jesus and what it means to truly represent him in my everyday, life in my actions and disciplines, especially in times where I feel tempted to not do so. I love Jesus, because one thing we can always be sure of is that when we truly accept him into our hearts, we are going to be sanctified and he will change the desires and posture of our hearts. This is what allows others to see that we are set apart from the world and to ask that question of what makes us different. What a gift it is to be able to outwardly reflect him and to be able to spark a question in other people's minds about the Lord. Praise him for being able to hear his knock even if it takes some time.
BUT the other day during my time with Jesus I felt an overflow of conviction. I felt like the Lord prompted the question in my heart of whether or not my inward, quiet moments also showed the actions of Jesus. What am I doing when I am at my laziest point, what am I looking at, how am I speaking, what does my space look like and what are my thoughts like?
This was really convinting because I am only able to pour into others if I am filling up with the word even when it's hard. Even when I feel lazy and the only thing that sounds fun is watching tv. I often think about a time in the bible where Jesus is obedient that has pushed me to look more like Him. The first thing that really pulled at my heart was when everyone was searching for Jesus and were frantic and worried that something might have happened to him, but when they discovered him he was with the Lord in his secret place praying, safer than he could be anywhere else. I often think about how cool this would be in my own life if I quietly snuck off to be with the Lord and people found me and I was with him and all my worries melted away.
What a cool moment this would be to tell others about who Jesus is to me because I'm with the father and I'm also doing just as he did because Jesus was so steadfast in his obedience and was not concerned with what others thought about him or even if they were concerned about where he was. I think in this world we often are so consumed with our phones, what others have to say or what we might miss if we put our phones down and open the word and just let the Lord speak. But this is what looking like Jesus is right? It is not just outwardly for other people to see it, is in the moments where we feel most apathetic and sleepy. Where we are still called to obey and resist the enemy, although we think these moments are meaningless and don't have any effect on us, but I often think of the fact that idle time is the devils playground.
So I leave you with a question to ponder today, what is the playground that the devil has set up shop in, in your mind, and how can you fight back to step out of his traps and choose to do something different today?