Looking Like My Dad

My dad was a very hard working man. Sometimes he would wake up before everyone else in the house, go do a day's worth of work and still be back in time to cook us all breakfast before any of us even thought about getting up, and then go work a little more. I'm not sure I realized this as a kid, though. I always just saw him after dinner in his pajamas which consisted a green t-shirt and blue sweatpants. He would always put on his nightly uniform and then lay on the couch and watch some TV.

I was probably 8 years old when I realized that I too owned a green t-shirt and blue sweatpants, so one night, on a whim, I put them on and went to lay down with my dad on the couch and watch wrestling with him. We didn't really talk much, we just laid there together and watched the grown men in underwear beat each other up.

I thought it was awesome! So much so that I continued to do it nightly for a long time. My mom thought it was cute, and I know my dad loved it too, but there wasn't really anything seemingly significant about that time. Yet these still stand out as some of the fondest memories I have of my dad. I remember how much I loved imitating my dad and how great it made me feel to know that he liked it too. I really do hope and pray that someday I'll be the kind of man that my kids want to imitate.

These memories popped into my head tonight as I read Ephesians 5:1, which says, "Therefore, be imitators of God, as beloved children." This, like so many other commands of God, is a command of love, not a wagging of His finger. He's not saying, "Ya know, you really wouldn't screw up so much if you'd just act more like Me." He's our Father. He knows that just like, imitating my dad, brought me joy, imitating God will bring His children joy as well. And more than that, I doubt little more brings joy to the Father's heart than when His kids are trying to be just like their Daddy.