Be transformed by the renewing of
your mind (Ro 12:2). Restoration causes transformation. We need to rest and be
restored. We need to be renewed so we can be more like God (aka be godly). We
are made in His image and are His children. We represent Him here on Earth. We
are spies in the enemy camp showing and displaying the goodness of God and
turning people from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. We create
a hunger for God through our actions. We become sheep among wolves (Mat 10:16),
a tasty treat so others can taste AND see that God is good (Ps 34:8). It is the
goodness of God that draws people. It is heaven in us that draws people.
Jesus prayed “on Earth as it is
in Heaven”. How does this become a reality?
1. By understanding we are of the
spiritual realm much more than we are of the physical realm. We are a new
creation (2 Co 5:17); we worship God in spirit and in truth (Jn 4:23-24, 1 Co
6:17). We are not of this world (1 Pe 2:11). We are under a new dominion, a new
kingdom (Jn 18:36). With this, comes a new way of thinking, a new way of seeing
things.
2. By spending time with the
Father and learning more about Him and following His example. When we spend time
with someone, we become like them. I have picked up quirks from my friends. From
Elise, I have learned to have the love language of awkward. I feel so loved
when a friend and I have awkward eye contact and sit in silence for a few
minutes. I have picked up some of Kyah’s hand gestures. I have started to smile
like Amy smiles. When we spend time with people, we pick up their phraseology,
their gestures, their way of viewing life.
If we want to become more like
the Father, we need to spend time with Him. We need to rest in His presence and
soak in His goodness. We need to be so saturated in Him that it oozes out of
our pours and changes the very essence of our being, our very perception of our
circumstances and our very response to those around us. It creates a hunger in
us for more of God, for more of His goodness.
Moses spent so much time in God’s
presence that his face shone (Ex 34:29). As a young man, Joshua would not leave
the Tent of Meeting (Ex 33:11). David was called a man after God’s heart (1 Sa
13:14). These men loved spending time with God. They were changed by it. They
loved God’s presence.
I love Moses’ prayer in Exodus
33: “If I have found favor in your sight, please show me now your ways that I
may know you in order to find favor in your sight” (13). When we love someone,
we don’t want to always do what annoys that person. We learn what brings them
joy and love doing that with them and for them. Moses so wanted to know God. Right
after Moses asked God to know Him better and to learn what pleases Him, God
responds with “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest” (33:14).
God didn’t directly answer Moses’ question. Instead, He responded with I will
be with you and will give you rest. It was not about what Moses could do for
God, it was about resting and being in God’s presence. It was about growing in
intimacy. As my pastor frequently says, “God is more concerned about what He is
doing in you than through you.”
Spend time resting in God’s
presence this week. Get to know His voice. Begin to hear His heartbeat. Knowing
God changes everything.
