Daddy's Girl

THEREFORE BE imitators of God [copy Him and follow His example], as well-beloved children [imitate their father].

2And walk in love, [esteeming and delighting in one another] as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a slain offering and sacrifice to God [for you, so that it became] a sweet fragrance. ^**

Woah. What a verse. I feel like this is one I could work on every day for the rest of my life and still not quite get there. Copy God!?! Walk in Love?!? But then I think of my son right now - who is at that great age when Daddy is better than a hot fudge sundae. I hear on a regular basis from Bo about how he wants to be just like his daddy in each and every way - from the way he works to the way he looks. Everything about his Dad is perfect and worthy of imitation.

That said, I sure do complicate my faith and my relationship with God. Scriptures tell us to become like a child. This is such great advice. Bo's ability to see his daddy as the "be-all-end-all" is the result of a few factors, which certainly apply to Abba even better:

1. David's actions: Bo's adoration is the natural response to the one who provides for him, who protects him, who guides him, who disciplines him, who spends time with him, plays with him and loves him no matter what. Without exception, when I consider the work of God in my life - his loving care, provision, guidance...I am moved to tears with gratitude and want to be just like Him.

2. Bohdan's youthfulness: I started questioning what happens to us that makes us stop looking at our parents as our heros as become teens (that was me, anyway). I thought about how much the world around us affects the views we have. I realized that each and every time Bo hear's me speak disrespectfully to David, or speak of him in a way that is dishonoring, Bo is learning that his Daddy "ain't all that." I thought about every show on TV (or movie) that portrays fathers as stupid, lazy, clueless, manipulatable, etc (there are MANY) and the impact this has on the respect for the role of fatherhood. And I thought about the times we mess up as adults, especially in our parenting, and the way this contributes to the "demotion" of the dad. Thank the Lord, He will never mess up, so that isn't an issue... but what about the other stuff? How many messages do we get in a day that are contrary to the Truth of Scripture and that try to convince us that Our God isn't All Powerful - isn't this really what SELF-help material is saying? Or that He doesn't have our best interest at heart - isn't that what consumerism and materialism is all about? Or that "He" doesnt' really even exist - the message of relativism, humanism, evolutionism? I could go on and on.

I don't want to sound militant about tuning out, shutting off, and being unplugged; but I just don't even realize how often I am being fed stuff that is degrading to my Heavenly Father. If I am so convicted by my own contribution to the demotion of David in the eyes of my own children (that was a serious blow to me today), how much more should I be aghast at my willingness to expose myself (and my family) to messages that make the Almighty Father seem anything less than perfect?

Today, I crawled up into my Daddy's lap, gazed into His beautiful Glory and proclaimed, "Daddy, I want to be just like you!" His reply, "Oh, my dear, sweet daughter...thanks to my Son, you already are." May I live in that reality and refuse to listen to the world around me. My God is so Great!

**This is from the Amplified Bible, which is one of my favorite translations because the words get broken down into all their possible meanings. (What can I say, I was an English major!)