Thoughts for the Day

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God......

Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be associated with them. For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light — for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true. Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what such people do secretly; but everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for everything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,

‘Sleeper, awake!
Rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.’

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

Yesterday we thought about Saint George and other Saints as mentors, but today Paul in his letter to the Ephesians asks us to consider imitating not a Saint, but God himself. Often as we grow up we have idols or heroes, those whom we look up to and want to copy. We want to look like them, copy their actions and even dress like them. Very often they are sports stars, and it's not only us that admire their achievements, the media do as well. They build up their status to such an extent that a country can be shaken to the core when their idol has feet of clay. This certainly happened in the US when 95 million Americans watched the arrest of O.J. Simpson for the murder of his former wife and her friend in 1994.

The problem is that some of our idols can be spiritually bankrupt. Indeed we too might be found wanting if someone held up a magnifying glass to our lives and our thoughts and actions. Often when we, or the media, build up someone to be such an idol we ignore their moral character and just look at their outward success. They may look bright and shiny heroes, winning all their races, or becoming superstars, but often this hides darkness.

Paul insists that we should model ourselves on Jesus Christ, who lived a perfect life in our world and showed us how to deal with temptations and problems. He is the one to look up to and the one to try and emulate. He sets the gold standard for love, for kindness, for mercy, and for holiness, and if we need living mentors then let it be Christian heroes who try to model their life on Christ.

Lord Jesus Christ,
forgive us our imperfections
and our lack of effort
in trying to model ourselves on You.
When we find it easier to make excuses
to take a wrong path,
perhaps because it seems easier,
may we think again,
and follow Your example of love
to walk in the light this day.
Amen.