Have you ever wondered if you are making an impact on someone’s life before? I used to teach elementary school. It was before I became a mom and I loved my students like they were my own children. I tried to get to know their families and connect with both parents and student.
There was one family I got to know well when I was teaching second grade. Toward the end of the school year they invited my husband and me to dinner. We had a wonderful time around the dinner table and when dinner was over; they told us to have a seat on the sofa because we were going to have some entertainment. Once we all got settled, they popped in a tape (this was pre-DVD days) and suddenly I was watching my student, Whitney, playing school. She was Mrs. Norris and she was doing calendar math with her “students.” It was frightening how this child walked like me, talked like me with her hands moving in the air like me. I didn’t know whether to be honored or afraid. She had been absorbing all that I did and said each day until she was a mini-me on tape. I realized we have no idea how we are influencing others in our daily life. We need to always be aware of what we are doing and saying.
In a culture that is full of people trying to imitate those in Hollywood, we are encouraged to become imitators of Christ Jesus [Ephesians 5:1] in all we do. If we are following Jesus and anyone follows us, they will be following Jesus [Matthew 4:19, 1 Corinthians 11:1].
We must be careful with the choices we make. We do not dare want our words or actions to cause another to stumble in their Christian walk [1 John 2:10]. Romans 12:2 challenges us to “not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is– his good, pleasing and perfect will.” The best way to do this is to live out Philippians 4:8 which says “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable– if anything is excellent or praiseworthy– think about such things.”
If our focus is on Jesus instead of the things of this world, we will come closer to imitating Him in all we do and say. We need to make our lives like fitly shot arrows with Jesus as our target.