Like Father, Like Son

"Jesus said to them, 'Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise.'"

(John 5:19)

Sociologists tell us that a child's personality and temperament is established by age 4. I find that remarkable. Sure, we can change, grow, and adapt as we get older... but MUCH of who we are is cemented by the time we're four years old. That means the "early years" are so vitally important. Love, security, nourishment, joy... the experiences we have an an infant/toddler are crucial. But even more so are our RELATIONSHIPS. Whomever we spend the majority of our time with as children will become very telling. For most of us, that's our parents. But sometimes it's also grandparents, child-care providers, and close family friends.

In the Gospel of John, Jesus was responding to criticism because he healed a man on the Sabbath. The man had been ill for 38 years (wow... think about that!). Jesus made him well. And then Jesus had to face a firestorm of criticism for it.

Jesus' response to this hatred was to say that God is still working, so he must do the same. "The Son can do nothing on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing." Which makes sense when you think about human relationships, right? We become what we grew up with. The ways we saw our parents interact, love, fight, serve, use their free time, worship, etc... we've a proclivity to repeat much of that.

Jesus knows God's nature. So Jesus embodies who God is - how God loves, creates, offers grace, gets angry, etc. God is our Father (Parent!), too! Are WE reflecting God's attributes in our lives?

And what about our children? Are we living, loving, and being faithful in ways that we'd want them to emulate? Because they're watching us! All the time. And they'll eventually do whatever it is that we're doing. They'll use the same language they hear us using. They'll chose to spend their time in the same activities we're involved in. That's a powerful insight (and even a bit scary!).

Lord Jesus, help me to embody your love, grace, mercy, and peace more and more into my life. Thank you for the influence my parents had in my early years. And forgive me for the (many) times I've failed to reflect your character for others... especially my children. AMEN.