Imitators of Christ

I John 2:6 NLT

Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.

This verse stings me almost everyday! I say I’m a Christ follower, but do I act that out by the way I live? The life of a follower of Christ is often referred to as a journey…to become more Christ like each and every day.

When I was a new and young Christian I understood that certain huge sins were wrong…don’t kill, don’t steal. But what about lying? Is it better to lie than hurt someone’s feelings? As I’ve grown older and been mentored by some amazing people I’ve learned that these decisions are hard! Sometimes the right thing to do is complex. Sometimes earnest Christian’s will respond differently.

What we should not do is fall back on the adage “That’s just the way I am.” In the Bible we have a witness to Jesus, to how he treated people. Sometimes with firmness, sometimes with compassion, but always with grace and love.

Every difficult situation we encounter can be viewed through his eyes…even if the circumstances are different. Since cars were not an option for Jesus, we’re don’t find road rage addressed in Scripture, but we do find ways to address anger and how to treat our fellow humans! “That just the way I am?” I hope not! I pray to better tomorrow than I was today.

Would you join me in prayer?

Creator God, you have created all that there is and humans in your image, please show us the way to be that image to everyone, in all places, and also to your creation. Forgive us when we fail and give us courage to keep going every single day. Amen

This devotion was written and read by Leslie Ragland.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.