Every year on my son’s birthday, I dress him up in one of my husband’s old work shirts and take his picture. I slip the picture into a special album, along with a note about the things he’s accomplished that year. I can then flip through the album to see how much he’s grown. (Yes, it is a cool idea, and I totally stole it from Oprah.)
I could stare at those pictures for hours! I love the way he wears the shirt a little better each year. And I wonder if God sees us that way. Does He take a spiritual snapshot of me each year on my birthday and compare it to a picture of Jesus? Do I look more like Him this year? Act more like Him? Have more compassion than I used to? See things the way He does?
Funny how I would never expect Jack to fit into his daddy’s shirt at age four, but I sometimes expect to look like Jesus all at once. I think our Father takes pleasure in watching us develop, grow, learn and change, just the way I marvel at what my son can do now that he couldn’t before. God isn’t looking at my picture noticing all the things I lack.
He’s looking at it with Fatherly pride, knowing my path and my potential, knowing all the ways He’s made me special and knowing that He will complete a good work in me. So as I approach my thirtieth birthday this week, I hope to see myself more as God does this year: His daughter who is growing in the image of His Son.
Memory Verse:
“Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as he is.”
-1 John 3:2 (NIV)
Prayer Prompt:
“Thank you for being my loving Father. Help me to grow in your grace and love. I want to look more like your Son. Make me more like Him in the area of…”
Contributing Writer:
Mariah Froehlich
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