Who's Watching You?

"Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children...." Ephesians 5:1a

We have a "dearly loved child" in our daughter Melea. She is 8 years old and in the second grade. We adopted her from China when she was just over a year old. She is the very embodiment of the blessing of obedience. God called us to go to China for her...and we have reaped a multitude of blessings because of our willingness to follow His plan.

Ever since Melea was just a toddler, she has been an imitator of my actions. I can remember in very early days, Melea watching as I did my daily exercises for my neck and back...studying every move carefully and then doing it herself. I can just picture those little eyes looking up at me, though her head was bent forward in a neck stretch, to make sure that she was doing it "just right."

Yesterday I was reminded again of how those precious eyes are watching and how her actions are reflecting those of my own. You see, she has started her own "blog." It isn't on a computer, but on a spiral bound notebook...in her very best cursive handwriting. In it, she writes of the things she loves, the things that are important in her life...her favorite stuffed animal that she made at Build a Bear with her "best buddy" Rachel (our daughter) and her fiance, Brandon...and other things that communicate how much she loves her life and how she appreciates the many blessings that God has brought her way. Her blog is also an outlet for some fiction writing... again, an imitation...as I spend a lot of my time writing fiction for children's books.

What an awesome responsibility it is to be watched and imitated! That surely increases my desire to be like Christ...to be an imitator of God...and to "live a life of love" (more from Eph. 5:1) just as Christ did.

Who is watching you?

Our precious Heavenly Father, thank you that we are your "dearly loved child." Help us as we strive to imitate you...and you alone. Help us to walk in love as Jesus did. Help us to study your every move and walk in your footsteps. Draw us to your Word so that we may know you more each day and reflect your love to those who would seek to watch and imitate us.