Wednesday, May 11, 2022
And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord,[a] are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.[b] For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:18
Live What You Want Them To Learn
Anyone who has kids is well aware of how it feels when one day your kid is mimicking your own worst behavior. That is the last thing we want as parents. What we really want is for them to be even better than us, and we spend time in prayer and studying God’s word to equip ourselves to lead them.
In the sermon this past Sunday, we learned that mother eagles “imprint” on their eaglets. Eagles must learn to fly and hunt and are taught by observing their parents. These skills are not instinctive like some of God’s creatures. They learn to do these things through “imprinting.”
Imprinting is actually what we do with our children whether we intend to or not. They are always watching and listening, even when we think they are not. They are watching how we respond to stress, anger, pain, depression, rejection, weariness, frustration, failure, financial setbacks, death, job loss or other life issues. We think we are hiding things from them, but they are more perceptive than we think. In the natural environment of a family, living together and doing life together, some of our bad habits will come out. But we need to be intentional in making sure we show them more of our “good” spiritual habits than our worldly human habits.
Imprinting is what God does in giving us the example of Jesus.
(What Would Jesus Do?) - Van Houser
We are human and we will make mistakes, but God has given us a perfect picture of the kind of faith and life we should be living out in front of our children - and the rest of the world. He knows our weaknesses and cared enough about us to give us a living demonstration.
Jesus said to him, "Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, 'Show us the Father'? "Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works. "Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; otherwise believe because of the works themselves. John 14:9-11
The more time we spend with God, in prayer and in His word, the more we will glow with His presence in our lives. When God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses, Moses was with God for 40 days and 40 nights on Mt. Sinai. When he came down the mountain, he was glowing so much that Aaron and all the Israelites were afraid to get close to him. Anyone who experiences the Lord will be changed, and that change will be evident and spread to those around them - like the glow on Moses’ face.
The closer your proximity to God, the more your face glows. Moses came down the mountain and the glory of the Lord was showing on his face. When we have been in the Lord’s presence, our faces glow. Our lives glow. The longer Moses was away from the presence of God, the less his face shined. The glow dulled as he was away from God. The further away from God we are, the less we shine, and the less our actions will shine. People will notice a difference when you shine, and they will notice a difference when your shine starts to fade.
Only being in the presence of God can get us glowing. Only staying in the presence of God will keep us glowing. The good news is it is readily available for all of us because of Jesus! Christ can get us face-to-face with God. No door, no curtain, no veil. Just our unveiled faces with His. We can “imprint” this glow we get from the presence on God on our children and be an example to them as to how to live with this glow in their lives.
Today, will your family see the glow of God on your face? Will it be evident to them that you have been with God? We need to take a trip up the mountain with God, hear His word, honor and bless His wonderful name so that when we come down from the mountain, we can make Him known to those in our life.
Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:1
