You Are What You Have Been Becoming
By
Carolyn Hulliberger
“Don’t
be misled: No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants, he will
harvest.”
Galatians
6:7 (The Message, paraphrase)
If you had a crystal
ball and could see the future, how do you imagine your life in…
10 years?
25 years?
50 years?
The funny thing about
this exercise is that if I reverse it and go back in my head to the person I
was 10 or 25 years ago, I wouldn’t have been able to see my life exactly as it
is now. But the decisions I made in those years have absolutely impacted my
reality today. You see, our future eventually becomes our present. So often, we
are lulled into complacency, thinking we have plenty of time to work on that
future “me.” In actuality, the only day any of us is guaranteed is the day we
are presently in.
Choices matter. The
media we watch, how we treat our bodies, the friends we have, are all
important. Perhaps you’re like me: All too often, my choices today don’t
necessarily reflect the person I would like to think I’m working to become,
especially in my relationship with Jesus. Because He is not physically next to
me demanding my time, it can be easy to choose checking email or catching up on
Facebook over spending time in my Bible with Him, developing my prayer
relationship with Him, or even writing this devotional.
I read a quote
recently: “You are what you have been becoming.” It made me think about who I
want to be, and to look for role models in those areas. For instance, my
grandma was the definition of a “prayer warrior.” I find myself often thinking
of her when I pray these days. I have other friends who have exceptional hearts
of compassion. They are influencing me, as well. It can help to find a “Jesus
with skin on,” a person who is demonstrating how to live out an aspect of the
Christ-following life, to have as a mentor.
So, back to the
original question with a twist…how will Jesus be demonstrated in your life in
10 years? 25? And what can you do today to start to get there?
GOING DEEPER:
1. Ask the Lord to show
you how you can be involved in another’s life as a role model or mentor.
FURTHER READING:
Along
with caring for her family, Carolyn works as an insurance representative and
serves in Oakwood Church's Student Ministries with an awesome group of junior
high girls.
