Footsteps

From my younger years until now, I always had someone in my mind that I want to be like. I’m sure most of us have the same experience. Let me share with you some of my “wanna be’s”.When I was in kindergarten, I really wanted to be a doctor. It’s what I always hear from my favorite part of Eat Bulaga, the Little Miss Philippines. “Paglaki ko, gusto kong maging doctor, para magamot ko ang lahat ng may sakit sa buooooooooong mundo! Bow!”When I was in elementary, I wanted to be “Fei” from Okay ka Fairy ko. She was the mother of Aiza, the wife of Enteng Kabisote and the daughter of Ina Magenta. I used to mimic her hand gestures when she wants to go to another place or when she creates magic. Magic! Super power! How I wished I have magic and super power! Go to places, have a Barbie house, anything I want in just a sec!When I was in high school, got more serious, I dreamed of becoming like Marilou Diaz-Abaya, Jose Javier Reyes, James Cameron, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. They are all film directors. I had a passion in creating films and that was the time when I decided to take up film making or any course related to it like Communication Arts.When I was in college, I got hooked into writing and discovered that I cannot live without it. So I wanted to follow the footsteps of great writers from my college writing professors to the famous novel writers like F. Sionil Jose, Paulo Coelho and Nicholas Sparks. Even though I experienced a lot of criticisms about the way I write from some professors, I did not stop writing. I almost did, but there are still people like my professors/mentors who believe in me, plus the big factor – I believe God wants to use my talent in writing for His glory.When I joined the music ministry in our church, I started to admire Darlene Zschech of Hillsong Music Australia (I was a Hillsong baby!). She’s not just a great worship leader, but also a great writer of songs and articles. I grew in the kind of music she led. I love her songs. I love her teachings about worship.Today, I know that……I cannot be a doctor because I’m scared of blood;…I cannot be Fei because she’s not real;…I cannot be a film director anymore because I did not major in film making and I am not planning to take up one in the future;…I can still be a great writer by writing for God’s glory, but not the way the people I mentioned write;…I cannot be Darlene Zscech because Darlene is Darlene, with a different name and a different calling from the Lord. God called me by name and I have my own calling from Him, too. But……I can be a follower of someone, who is a perfect model for people of all ages. As a matter of fact, I can be like Him. I can be like Jesus.“God created man according to His image and likeness.” (Genesis 1:27). ‘Yes! We can be a god like Jesus!’ Oopss! Wrong! Just to remind you or for your information, the fallen angel, Lucifer (who we now call as Satan), wanted to be god and not LIKE God. So how do we become like Him? Follow his footsteps.When Jesus became a man, His top priority was to do the will of the Father. Don’t ask me about God’s will for His will can only be found in His Words – the Bible. Everything we do falls under a choice between doing our own will or God’s will. If we decide to sin or break what God says in His Words, we choose our own will. If we decide to follow what is in the Bible, we absolutely choose God’s will.Following God’s will does not assure us that our journey with Him is gonna be a walk in the park or as easy as 1, 2, 3. In fact, like what happened to Jesus, attached in doing God’s will are persecution and suffering. Oh my! So who will follow Him if that’s the case? Those people who accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. The acceptance is a package deal filled with renewed strength everyday, a joy which does not depend on any circumstance, peace in times of trouble, grace and mercy in times of your shortcomings, the Lord’s goodness which follows you all the days of your life and God’s love which is everlasting and surpasses everything – from times of disappointments to times of rejoicing. Let us not also forget, the prize for those who will endure and finish the race – eternal life with the Lord.We cannot be like Jesus in one sec. Not even Fei can do that. No one can. It’s a work in progress. God is not yet finish with us. Like a potter, He continues to mold us, break us if needed and redo us just to give us the perfect finish. Like a clay, we should just be cooperative with what our Potter is doing because He knows what’s best for us. If we follow Him step by step, one day, we can be like Jesus. Same mind. Same heart. Just desire to be like Him and He will teach you how.Let us all follow His footsteps and be like Jesus!