The atheist finds himself enslaved by the need to prove himself an unbeliever. In denying the existence of God he finds nothing greater than himself and other selves in the universe. His greatest creed centers in ‘I believe in myself.’ —D. Bruce Lockerby
One of my good friends has a son named Ben. When Ben was little, he wasn’t so different from your average five-year-old—his room was messy; he never ate his vegetables; and he painted the walls instead of paper… but never had his dad seen someone so young care so much about his appearance. He used to stand and yell for mom and dad to rush into the room. The emergency? Sleeves touching the wrists, or shoelaces with uneven loops!
It was an early sign of a future, larger struggle he would deal with—a struggle that we all wrestle with:
- Obsession with outward appearances
- Focus on earthly belongings
- Satisfaction from impressing others through looks and actions
That’s the bad news. The good news is that God is able to transform us.
God is in the business of remodeling. He is able to transform our spirits and our minds, and one day He’ll even transform our bodies. Sometimes the remodeling is painful and ugly. He comes in and tears out the walls, the furnishings, and the old appliances that He knows must go if we are to reflect Jesus Christ outward through authentic lives. And one day, He will even take our decaying bodies and transform them into something glorious, reflecting His glory.
But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. (Philippians 3:20-21)
Almighty God, please get rid of the things that keep me in worldly bondage so I can be free in Christ to be all that You made me to be now and forever. Amen.