“Papa, what do you want more than anything else in the entire world?” asked my grandson, Keller.
We had been watching a commercial on his hand-held tablet during a football game, and he hadn’t blinked once during the entire advertisement. My first thought was that he wanted to know what was important to me. But, suddenly, the words of Jesus came to my mind: “For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.”
“Well, Keller,” I said, “most of all I want to be like Jesus, and then I’d also like to be the best Papa I can be. That’s very important to me, and other than being like Jesus, I want to be a good example for you.”
Not long ago, I read a story of a man in a foreign country who wanted to “Be like Jesus.” So, he decided to memorize the New Testament and made it through the Beatitudes. One day, he ran into the missionary who led him to the Lord and baptized him. Immediately, he told him about his goal and began reciting the Beatitudes. After he heard him recite them, he said, “Good. Now put them into practice.”
A few weeks later, he met the missionary again and said, “You know I tried doing what you said, and it didn’t work out. I got confused. So, I started over with just the first one, and it worked better. Now I’m working on the second. I want to live what I know.”
Knowing the Bible is one thing. Living it is very different. The Psalmist said, “Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying Your decrees.”
Prayer: Lord, help us to keep it simple but steady as we grow into the likeness of Your Son, our Savior. Teach us to walk one step at a time in strength. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Scripture For Today: Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying Your decrees. Psalm 119:5
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