“Eyes in the Front of Our Head”
There is a reason why we have eyes in the front of our heads. We were made to look forward and to move forward.
Yet I struggle with a tendency to keep looking back. I’ve had this tendency since I was young. However, now that I am old, the tendency is on steroids.
My twelve-step affirmation for today is as follows: “Today, by God’s grace, I am looking forward and moving forward toward the man God wants me to be. When I do this, I am the person God wants me to be.” As I usually do, I included this affirmation in my report to my sponsors.
One of my sponsors wrote back with some very thought-provoking questions:
“So, what does the man Daryl wants to be look like? Is this different than God’s wants?
Does God get what God wants?
I think you’re the man God wants you to be.”
The questions are probably more important than the answers. There are some questions that can and must be answered, but the best questions are those that continue to poke and probe and even haunt us.
As a would-be Christ-follower, I think that the answer to what God wants me to look like is found in Romans 8:29. Many Christians are familiar with and love Romans 8:28. Many have even memorized it.
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28, (English Standard Version)
But not as many of us are as familiar with vs. 29. That is most unfortunate, because verse 29 gives us the purpose that is mentioned in verse 28. “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” (ESV)
Being a brother or sister of Jesus—what a hoot! Way beyond a hoot! It is an amazingly gracious calling. Difficult? Yes! After all, Jesus lived and died for others. But still, it is an amazingly gracious calling.
So, what God wants is for me to bear a striking resemblance to Jesus. Am I there? I am most definitely not! However, I do believe that God is a little further along with me than he used to be. Conformed to the image of God’s Son? No, not yet. I am very much a work in progress. But that is what I want in my better moments. I have more of those better moments these days.
And God loves me right where I am, right now. I believe that for myself. I believe it for you too, dear reader. Life is a journey, not a destination, as the saying goes.
Yes indeed it is!
So, again, here are my sponsor’s questions, along with my right-now responses:
Q: “So, what does the man Daryl wants to be look like?” Jesus!
Q: “Is this different than God’s wants?” No, at least, not right now!
Q: “Does God get what God wants?” Today, I intend and plan for God to get exactly what God wants.
“I think you’re the man God wants you to be.” I dare to think so too.
Recent Comments